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Invasion of Julius Cc^sar, 




Vortigern and Rowena. 



HUMS AITB SBZOIiXiET'S 

CELEBRATED 

HISTORY OF ENGLAND, 



FROM ITS 
FIRST SETTLEMENT TO THE YEAR 1780. 

ACCURATELY AND IMPARTIALLY ABRIDGED. 

AND A 

CONTINUATION FROM THAT PERIOD 

TO THE 

CORONATION OF GEORGE IV. July 19, 1821. 

EMBRACING 

A Period of nearly Two Thousand Years, 



BY REV. JOHN ROBINSON, D.D. 

Author of a Gramirar of History, ArchaBoIogia GrjBca, Ancient and 

Modern History for the Use of Schools, and a 

Theological Dictionary. 



nimtrated by twenty-four pages of Engravings 

TOGETHER WITH 

AN APPENDIX, 

CONTAINING 

THE SUCCESSION OF SOVEREIGNS — EMINENT AND REMARKABLE 

PERSONS WHO HAVE FLOURISHED IN BRITAIN BATTLES IN 

ENGLISH HISTORY, BY SEA AND LAND, FROM 1588 TO 1806— 
IMPROVEMENTS AND INVENTIONS DISCOVERIES AND SETT- 
LING OF BRITISH COLONIES. 



NEWYORK: 
PUBLISHED BY ROBINSON, PRATT, & CO., 

63 WALL STREET ; 
AND SOLD BY THE PRINCIPAL BOOKSELLERS THROUGHOUT THE 

UNITED STATES, 

18437 



■0- 





•\9> 



TO HIS SONS, 

WILLIAM RICHARDSON ROBINSON, AND 
iVIATTHEW WILKINSON ROBINSON. 

THIS VOLUME OF ENGLISH HISTORY 

IS SPECIALLY INSCRIBED, 

BY THEIR AFFECTIONATE FATHER. 



Cliflon Rectory^ 7iear Penrith, 
MarcJt 15, 1823. 






'^^vt^a-^ ■ f'- 



-y ' ^ R" 



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V 






pimrj^os. 



The following work claims no higher merit than 
that of being a faithful abridgment of Hume and Smol- 
let's Histories of England, with a continuation .from au- 
thentic documents of events between the year 1760 and 
the coronation of George the Fourth. The author 
hopes that the whole will prove useful as a manual to 
juvenile students, for whom it is chiefly designed. 

The necessity of acquiring knowledge of the history 
of our own country, and of public events in which Great 
Britain has participated, is so obvious, as to render it 
unnecessary to prove, that the history of their own coun- 
try is a study which no British youth of either sex ought 
to neglect. 

The author has endeavoured to devest himself of all 
party spirit, and, in recording the successive facts, he 
has allowed no prejudices of his own to intermingle 
with the narration. Truth, and the principles of the 
British constitution, have been the standards by which 
his labours and sentiments have uniformly been guided. 

The history of Mr. Hume having obtained an unri- 
valled degree of literary precedency, and that of Dr. 
Smollet having been generally recognised as a worthy 
continuation from the Revolution to the demise of 
George H., it is reasonable that a succinct compression 
of these standard national works should be preferred to 
all others for purposes of education. But the design 
would have been incomplete without a continuation to 



IV PREFACE. 

the present age ; and, though the author is aware of the 
delicate responsibility of becoming a contemporary histo- 
rian, yet, as the duty became necessary, he has endea- 
voured to perform it with care and fidelity. 

The tables and facts contained in the Appendix 
form new features of such a work as the present ; but 
they furnish data, from which the student will be able to 
draw many valuable conclusions, and will tend to illus- 
trate and corroborate many details in the text of the 
History. 



I'HE 

HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 



CHAP. I. 

The Britons — Romans — Saxons — The Heptarchy. 

All ancient writers agree in representing the first in 
habitants of Britain as a tribe of the Gauls or Celts, who 
peopled that island from the neighbouring continent. Theii 
ianguage was the same — their manners, their government, 
iheir superstition ; varied only by those small differences, 
which time, or a communication with the bordering na- 
tions, must necessarily introduce. The inhabitants of 
Gaul, especially in those parts which lie contiguous to 
Italy, had acquired, from a commerce witli their southern 
neigiibours, some refinement in the arts, which gradually 
diiiuLed themselves northward, and spread only a very 
faint light over this island. The Greek and Roman navi- 
gatoi<5 or merchants, gave the most shocking accounts of 
the fi;rocity of the people, which they magnified, as usual, 
in order to excite the admiration of their countrymen. 
However, the south-east parts of Britain had already, be- 
fore the age of Ceesar, made the first and most requisite 
step towards a civil settlement ; and the Britons, by tillage 
and agriculture, had there increased to a great multitude. 
The other inhabitants of the island still maintained them- 
selves by pasture. They were clothed with the skins of 
beasts. They dwelt in huts that they reared in the forests 
and marshes, with which the country was covered. They 
easily removed their habitation, when actuated either by the 
hopes of plunder, or the fear of an enemy. The conve- 
nience of feeding their cattle was even a sufficient motive 
for removing their dwellings; and, as they were ignorant 
of all the refinements of life, their wants and their pos- 
sessions were equally limited and scanty. 

The Britons were divided into many small nations or 
tribes ; and being a military people, whose sole property 
I* 



HISTORY Of ENGLaNO. 

was their arms and their cattle, it was impossible, after 
they had acquired a relish of liberty, for their princes or 
chieftains to establish any despotic authority over them. 
Their governments, though monarchical, were free ; and 
the common people seem to have enjoyed even more liber- 
ty among them, than among the nations of Gaul, from 
whom they were descended. Each state was divided into 
factions within itself. It was agitated with jealousy or ani- 
mosity against the neighbouring states ; and while the arts 
of peace were yet unknown, wars were the chief occupa- 
tion, and formed the chief object of ambition among the 
people. 

The religion of the Britons was one of the most consi- 
derable parts of their government; and the Druids, who 
were their priests, possessed great authority. They en- 
joyed an immunity from wars and taxes. They possessed 
both the civil and criminal jurisdiction. They decided all 
c<mtroversies among states, as well as among private per- 
?»i>ns ; and whoever refused to submit to their decree, 
^'i as exposed to the most severe penalties. Thus the bands 
)f government, which were naturally loose among that rude 
and turbulent people, were happily corroborated by the 
terrors of their superstition. No species of superstition was 
■ ver more terrible than that of the Druids. Besides the 
evere penalties which it was in their power to inflict in 
his world, they inculcated the eternal transmigration of 
iouls, and thereby extended their authority as far as the 
fears of their votaries. Human sacrifices were practised 
among them. The spoils of war were often devoted to 
their divinities ; and they punished with the severest tor- 
tures those who dared to secrete any part of the conse- 
crated offering. These treasures they kept in woods and 
forests, secured by no other guard than the terrors of their 
religion; and this steady conquest over human cupidity, 
may be regarded as more signal than their prompting men 
to the most extraordinary and most violent efforts. No 
idolatrous worship ever attained such an ascendancy ovei 
mankind, as that of the ancient Gauls and Britons. 

The Britons had long remained in this rude and inde- 
pendent state, when Csesar, having overrun all Gaul by 
his victories, and being ambitious of carrying the Roman 
arms into a new world, then mostly unknown, took advan- 
taf?e of a short interval ni his Gaulic wars, and invaded 



THE BRITONS. / 

Britain. The natives, informed oi his intention^ were sen- 
sible of the unequal contest, and endeavoured to appease 
him by submissions ; but these retarded not the execution 
of his design. After some resistance, Cssar land- 
ed, as is supposed, at Deal ; and having obtained l,- * 
several advantages over the Britons, and obliged 
them to promise hostages for their future obedience, he 
was constrained, by the necessity of his affairs, and the 
approach of winter, to withdraw his forces into Gaul. The 
Britons, relieved from the terror of his arms, neglected 
the performance of their stipulations ; and that haughty 
conqueror resolved next summer to chastise them for this 
breach of treaty. He landed with a greater force ; and 
though he found a more regular resistance from the Bri- 
tons, who had united under Cassivelaunus, one of their 
petty princes, he discomfited them in every action. He 
advanced into the country ; passed the Thames in the face 
of the enemy ; took and burned the capital of Cassivelau- 
nus ; established his ally, Mandubratius, in the sovereignty 
of the Trinobantes ; and having obliged the inhabitants to 
make him new submissions, he again returned with his 
army into Gaul, and left the authority of the Romans 
more nominal than real in this island. 

The civil wars which ensued saved the Britons from t] 
yoke which was ready to be imposed upon them. Aiig\ 
tus, the successor of Caesar, content with the victory c 
tained over the liberties of his own country, was little ai 
bitious of acquiring fame by foreign wars. Tiberius, 
ygealous of the fame which might be acquired by his gene- 
rals, made this advice of AugTistus a pretence for his inac- 
tivity. The mad sallies of Caligula, in which he menaced 
Britain with an invasion, served only to expose himself 
and the empire to ridicule ; and the Britons, during almost 
a century, enjoyed their liberty unmolested. In the reign 
of Claudius, the Romans began to think seriously of re- 
ducing them under their dominion. Without seeking any 
justifiable reason of hostility, they sent over an army 
under the command of Plautius, an able general, '^'^' 
who gained some victories, and made a considera- 
ble progress in subduing the inhabitants. Claudius him- 
self, finding matters sufficiently prepared for his reception, 
made a journey into Britain, and received the submission 
of several British states, the Cantii, Atrebates, Regni, and 



HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Triiiobantes, who inhabited the south-east parts of the 
island. The other Britons, under the command of Carac- 
tacus, still maintained an obstinate resistance ; and the 
Romans made little progrtss against them, till Ostorius 
Scapula was sent over to command their armies. This 
general advanced the Roman conquests over the 

Aq * Britons ; pierced into the country of the Silures, a 
v/arlike nation, who inhabited the banks of the Se- 
vern ; defeated Caractacus in a great battle ; took him 
prisoner, and sent him to Rome, vvhere his magnanimous 
behaviour procured him better treatment than the Romans 
usually bestowed on captive princes. 

Notwithstanding these misfortunes, the spirit of the Bri- 
tons was not subdued. In the reign of Nero, Suetonius 
Paulinus was invested with the command, and penetrated 
into the island of Mona, now Anglesey, the chief seat of 
the Druids. He drove the Britons off the field, burned 
the Druids in those fires wliich the priests had prepared 
for their captive enemies, and destroyed all the consecra- 
ted groves and altars. Having thus triumphed over the 
religion of the Britons, Suetonius expected that his future 
progress would be easy, in reducing the people to subjec- 
tion. But the Britons, headed by Boadicea, queen of the 
Icena, who had been treated in the most ignominious 
manner by the Roman tribunes, attacked with success 
several settlements of their insulting conquerors. London, 
which was already a flourisliing Roman colony, was re- 
duced to ashes ; and the Romans and all strangers, to the 
number of seventy thousand, were massacred by the exas- 
perated natives. Their fate, however, was soon after 
avenged by Suetonius, in a bloody and decisive battle, in 
which eighty thousand Britons are said to have perished ; 
and Boadicea, rather than submit to the victor, put an end 
to her life by poison. 

Julius Agricola, who governed Britain in the reigns of 

Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian, formed a regTilar 

"^Ai^* plan for subduing this island, and rendering the 

acquisition useful to the conquerors. He carried 

his victorious arms northwards ; defeated the Britons in 

eveiy encounter; pierced the forests and mountains of 

Caledonia ; and reduced every state to subjection in the 

southern parts of the island. Having fixed a chain of 

forts between the friths of Clvde and Forth, he secured 



THE ROMANS. *-\ 

the Roman province from the incursions of its ferocious 
neighbours. 

During these military enterprises, Agricola did not ne- 
glect the arts of peace. He introduced laws and arts 
among the Britons; taught them to value the conve- 
niences of life ; reconciled them to the Roman language 
and manners ; instructed them in letters and science ; 
and endeavoured to render their chains easy. By this 
conduct, the inhabitants gradually acquiesced in the do- 
minion of their masters. 

To secure the Roman province from the irruptions of 
the Caledonians, Adrian built a rampart between the river 
Tyne and the frith of Solway : this was strengthened with 
new fortifications by Severus ; and during the reigns of 
the other Roman emperors, such a profound tranquility 
prevailed in Britain, that little mention is made of the 
affairs of that island by any historian. The natives, dis- 
armed, dispirited, and submissive, had lost even the idea 
of their former independence. 

But the Roman empire, which had diffused slavery and 
oppression, together with a knowledge of the arts, over a 
considerable part of the globe, approached its dissolution. 
Italy, and the centre of the empire, removed, during so 
many ages, from all concern in the wars, had entirely lost 
its military spirit, and were peopled by an enervated race, 
equally ready to submit to a foreign yoke, or to the ty- 
ranny of their own rulers. The northern barbarians assail- 
ed all the frontiers of the Roman empire. Instead of arm- 
ing the people in their own defence, the emperors recalled 
all the distant legions, in whom alone they could repose 
confidence. Britain being a remote province, and not much 
valued by the Romans, the legions that defended it were 
employed in the protection of Italy and Gaul ; and that 
island, secured by the sea against the inroads of tlie greater 
tribes of barbarians, found enemies on its frontiers, ready 
to take advantage of its defenceless situation. "The Picts, 
who were a tribe of the British race driven northwards by 
the arms of Agricola, and the Scots, who were supposed 
to have migrated from Ireland, pierced the rampart of 
Adrian, no longer defended by the Roman arms, and ex- 
tended their ravages over the fairest part of the country. 
The Romans, reduced to extremities at home, and fatigued 
with distant expeditions, informed the Britons tliat they 



aO history of ENGLAND. 

must no longer look on them for succour ; exhorted thera 
to arm in their own defence; and urged them to protect 
by their valour their ancient independence. Accordingly, 
the Romans took a final adieu of Britain, after having been 
masters of the best portion of it nearly four centuries. 
The abject Britons of the south, unaccustomed to the 

^ ^ perils of war and the cares of civil government, 
^^g* found themselves incapable of resisting the incur- 
sions of their fierce and savage neighbours. The 
Picts and Scots now regarded the whole of Britain as theii 
prey ; and the ramparts of the northern wall proved only 
a weak defence against the attacks of those barbarians. 
The Britons in vain implored the assistance of the Romans, 
in an epistle to ^Etius the patrician, which was inscribed, 
\*' The Groans of the Britons." .The tenor of the epistle 
was suitable to the superscription : " The barbarians," 
say they, " on the one hand drive us into the sea, the 
sea, on the other, throws us back on the barbarians ; and 
we have only the hard choice left us, of perishing by the 
sword or by the waves." The Romans, however, at this 
time pressed by Attila, the most terrible enemy that ever 
assailed the empire, were unable to attend to the com- 
plaints of their allies. The Britons, reduced to despair, 
and attending only to the suggestions of their own fears, 
and to the counsels of Vortigern, the powerful prince of 
Dumnonium, rashly invited the protection of the Saxons. 
The Saxons had been for some time regarded as one 
of the most warlike tribes of Germany, and had 

A4Q become the terror of the neighbouring nations. 
* They had spread themselves from the northern 
parts o1^ Germany, and had taken possession of all the sea- 
coast from the mouth of the Rhine to Jutland. Hengist 
and Horsa, two brothers, who were the reputed descend- 
ants of the god Woden, commanded the Saxons at this 
period. These leaders easily persuaded their countiymen 
to accept of the invitation of the Britons, and to embrace 
an enterprise in Avhich they might display their valour and 
gi-atify their desire of plunder. They embarked their 
troops in three vessels, and transported to the shores of 
Britain sixteen hundred men, who landed in the isle of 
Thanet, and attacked with confidence and success the 
northern invaders. 

Hengist and Horsa, perceiving, from their easy victoiy 



THE feAXONS. II 

over the Scots and Picts, with what faciUty they might 
subdue the Britons themselves, determined to fight and 
conquer for their own grandeur, and not for the defence 
of their allies. They sent intelligence to Saxony of tiie 
riches and fertility of Britain ; and their representations 
procured for them a reinforcement of five thousand men* 
The Saxons formed an alliance with the Picts and Scots, 
whom they had been invited to resist, and proceeded to 
open hostility against the English, whom they had enga- 
ged to protect. 

The Britons, roused to indignation against their treache- 
rous allies, took up arms ; and having deposed Vortigern, 
who had become odious for his vices, and for the bad suc- 
cess of his counsels, they put themselves under the com- 
mand of his son Vortimer. They ventured to mee. their 
perfidious enemies, and though generally defeated, one 
l3attle was distinguished by the death of Horsa, who left 
the sole command in the hands of his brother, Hengist. 
This active general, reinforced by his countrymen, still 
advanced to victory ; and, being chiefly anxious to spread 
the terror of his arms, he spared neither age, sex, nor con- 
dition. Great numbers of Britons, to avoid his cruelty 
or avarice, deserted their native country, and passed over 
to the continent, where, in the province of Armorica, they 
were received by a people of the same language and 
manners, and gave to the country the name of Brittany. 

The British writers say, that the love of Vortigern for 
Rowena, the daughter of Hengist, was one cause that 
facilitated the entrance of the Saxons into this island ; 
and that Vortigern, who had been restored to the throne, 
accepted of a banquet from Hengist at Stonehsnge, where 
three hundred of his nobility were treacherously slaugh- 
tered, and himself detained a captive. But these accounts 
are not sufficiently corroborated. 

After the death of Vortimer, Ambrosius was invested 
with the supreme command over the Britons, and united 
them in their resistance to the Saxons. Hengist, however, 
maintained his ground in Britain. H3 invited into this 
island another tribe of Saxons, under the command of his 
brother Octa, and of Ebissa, the son of Octa, whom he 
settled in Northumberland ; and he founded the kingdom 
of Kent, comprehending Kent, Middlesex, Essex, and 
part of Surry, which he bequeathed to his posterity. 



l'^ 



IIISTORV OF ENGLAND. 



The success of Hengist alliiied new swarms from the 
iiorlhern coasts of Germany. The southern Britons gra- 
dually receded before the invaders, into Cornwall and 
Wales ; and vElla, a Saxon chief, founded the kingdom 
of South Saxony, comprising Sussex, and that portion of 
Surry wliich Hengist had not occupied. 

The kingdom of the West Saxons, or of Wessex, was 
founded by Cerdic, and his son Kenric, in Hampshire, Dor- 
setshire, Wiltshire, Berkshke, and the Isle of Wight ; but 
it was not till after many a bloody conflict, that these ad- 
venturers enjoyed in peace the harvest of their toils. They 
were opposed by Arthur, prince of the Silures, whose he- 
roic valour suspended the declining fate of his country, 
antl whose name has been celebrated by Taliesin and the 
other British bards. The military achievements of this 
prince have been blended with fiction : but it appears from 
incontestible evidence, that both in personal and mental 
powers he excelled the generality of mankind. 

Whilst the Saxons thus established themselves in the 
south, great numbers of their countrymen, under several 
leaders, landed on the east coast of Britain. In the year 
575, IJfFa assumed the title of king of the East Angles ; 
in 585, Crida, that of Mercia ; and, about the same time, 
Fa'kemvint, that of the East Saxons. This latter kingdimi 
was dismembered from that of Kent, and comprehended 
Essex, Middlesex, and part of Hertfordshire; that of the 
East Angles, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk, and Norfolk ; Mer- 
cia was extended over all the middle countries, from the 
banks of the Severn to the frontiers of those two kingdoms. 

Though the Saxons had been settled in Northumberland 
soon after the landing of Hengist, yet they met with so 
miich opposition from the inhabitants, that none of their 
princes for a long time assumed the appellation of king. 
In 547, Ida, a Saxon prince, who boasted his descent from 
Woden, and who had brought other reinforcements fi-om 
Germany, subdued all Northumberland, the bishopric of 
Durham, and some of the south-east counties of Scotland. 
About the same time, .Ella, another Saxon prince, having 
conquered Lancashire, and the greater part of Yorkshire, 
received the appellation of king of Deira. These two 
kingdoms were united in the person of Ethelfrid, grand- 
son of Ida, who married Acca, the daughter of vElla ; and 



THE H!:PTARCny. 13 

oXpellmg his brother-in-law, Edwin, he assumed the title 
of king' of Northumberland. 

Thus was established, after a violent contest of nearly a 
hundred and fifty years, the Heptarchy, or seven Saxon 
kingdoms, in Britain ; under wliicli the whole southern 
part of the island, except Wales and Cornwall, in a great 
measure mixed its inhabitants, and changed its language, 
customs, and political institutions. The Britons, under 
the Roman dominion, had made such progress in the arts 
and civilization, that they had built twenty-eight consider- 
able cities, besides a great number of villages and country- 
seats ; but the Saxons, by whom they were subdued, re- 
stored the ancient barbarity, and reduced to the most ab- 
ject slavery those few natives vrho were not either massa- 
cred, or expelled their habitations. 

After the Britons vrere confined to Cornwall and Wales, 
and no longer disturbed the conquerors, the alliance be- 
tween the princes of the Heptarchy was in a great mea- 
sure dissolved. Dissentions, wars, and revolutions among 
themselves, were the natural consequence. At length, 
nearly four hundred years after the first arrival of the 
Saxons in Britain, all the kingdoms of the Heptar- 
chy were united in one gi'eat state, under Egbert, ok-y* 
whose prudence and policy effected what had been 
often in vain attempted.* His territories were nearly of 
the same extent with what is now properly called Eng- 
land ; and prospects of peace, security, and increasing 
refinement, were thus afforded. 

The Saxons at this period seem not to have thuch ex- 
celled their German ancestors in arts, civilization, huma- 
nity, justice, or obedience to the laws. Christianity had 
not hitherto banished their ignorance, nor softened the 
ferocity of their manners ; credulity and superstition had 
accompanied the doctrines received through the corrupted 
channels of Rome ; and the reverence towards saints and 
relicks seemed almost to have supplanted the adoration 
of the Supreme Being. Monastic observances w^ere es- 
teemed more meritorious than the active virtues ; the uni- 
versal belief in miraculous interpositions superseded the 
knowledge of natural causes ; and bounty to the church 
atoned for every violence against society. The sacerdotal 
habit was the only object of respect. Hence the nobility 
preferred the security and sloth of the cloister to the tumult 
2 



14 HISTORY OF ENGLANO. 

and glory of war, and endowed monasteries of which th» ^ 
assumed the government. Hence also the kings, impove- 
rished by continual benefactions to the churcli, were neither 
able to bestow rewards on valour or military services, nor 
retained sufficient influence to «iupport their government. 
Another inconvenience which attended this corrupt spe 
cies of Christianity, was tiie superstitious attachment to 
Rome. The Saxons were taught by the monks a profound 
reverence for the holy see ; and kings, abdicating their 
crowns, sought a secure passport to Jieaven at the feet of 
the Roman pontiff. The successors of St. Peter, encou- 
raged by the blindness and submissive disposition of the 
people, advanced every day in their encroachments on the 
independence of the English church. In the eighth cen- 
tury, Wilfrid, bishop of Lindisfe^ne, the sole prelate of the 
Northumbrian kingdom, increased this subjection by an 
appeal to Rome against the decisions of an English synod. 
Wilfrid thus laid the foundation of the papal pretensions, 
which we shall find in the sequel were carried to the most 
disgraceful heights, and submitted to with a patience al- 
most incredible. 



CHAP. n. 

From tlie Union of the Kingdoms of the Heptarchy under 
Egbert, to the Norman Conquest. 
The kingdoms of the Heptarchy appeared to be firmly 
united in one state under Egbert ; and this union 
c^ryj' promised future tranquility to the inhabitants of 
' Britain. But these flattering hopes were soon over- 
cast oy ti\e appearance of the Danes. The emperor Char- 
lemagne had been induced to exercise great severities in 
Germany ; and the more warlike of the natives, to escape 
the fury of his persecutions, had retired into Jutland. 
From that northern extremity they invaded France, which 
was exposed by the dissentions of the posterity of Char- 
lemagne. Designated by the general name of Normans, 
which they received from their northern situation, they 
became a terror to the maritime, and even to the inland 
countries. In their predatoiy excursions they were tempt- 
ed to visit England, and in their hostilities made no 
distinction between the French and English na- 'jgj 
tions. After an unsuccessful attempt on Northum- 
berland, they landed on the isle of Shepey, which they 



EGBERT ETHEL WOLF. 1 5 

plundered with impunity. The next year they disem- 
barked in Dorsetshire from thirty-five ships, and were 
encountered by Egbert at Ciiarmouth, where the Danes 
were defeated with great loss. They afterwards entered 
into an alliance with the Britons of Cornwall, and, in 
conjunction with their allies, made an inroad into Devon- 
shire, where they were met at Hingesdown by Egbert, 
and overthrown with considerable slaughter. The death 
of Egbert, whose prudence and valour had rendered him 
a terror to his enemies, revived the hopes of the Danes, 
and prompted them to new efforts. 

Ethelwolf, the son and successor of Egbert, pos- 
sessed neither the abilities nor the bravery of his ^Joq' 
father ; he was better qualified for a cloister than a 
throne. He commenced his reign with resigning to his 
eldest son, Athelstan, the' provinces of Essex, Kent, and 
Sussex. The domestic dissentions which this partition 
was calculated to occasion, was prevented by the terror 
excited by the Danes, whose inroads were felt through 
Hampshire, Suffolk, Norfolk, and Kent. In their course 
they carried off the goods, the cattle, and even the wretched 
inhabitants ; and then retiring to their vessels, they set 
sail to some distant quarter which was not prepared for 
their reception. Though often repulsed, and sometimes 
defeated, yet they could not be expelled. They established 
themselves in the isles of Thanet and Shepey, whence 
they constantly harassed and ravaged the adjacent coasts. 

The unsettled state of England did not prevent Ethel- 
wolf from making a pilgrimage to Rome, whither he car- 
ried his fourth and favourite son, Alfred, then only six 
years of age. He passed a twelvemonth at Rome, in ex- 
ercises of devotion, and failed not in liberality to the 
church. In his return home, he married Judith, the daugh- 
ter of the emperor Charles the bald ; but on his landing 
m England, he met with an opposition which he little ex- 
pected. Athelstan, his eldest son, had paid the debt of 
nature ; Ethelbald, his second, who had assumed the go- 
vernment, formed the project of excluding his father from 
a throne, for which his weakness and superstition little 
qualified him. E.thelwolf yielded in a great measure to the 
pretensions of his son : he retained the eastern, which were 
the least considerable, and ceded to Ethelbald the sove- 
reignty of the western districts of the kingdom. Ixnme 



16 /^ HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

diately after, he summoned the states of the whole king- 
dom, and, with the same facihty of disposition, not only 
granted to the priesthood a perpetual right to tithes, but 
exempted it from all imposts and burdens. 

Ethelwolf lived only two years after conferring this im- 
portant grant to the church. By his will he divi- 
ArJ" ded England between his two eldest sons, Ethelbald 
and Ethelbert ; the west being assigned to tlie for- 
mer and the east to the latter. Ethelbald was a profli- 
gate prince, who married Judith, his mother-in-law, and 
whose reign was short. His death united the whole go- 
vernment in the hands of Ethelbert, who during five years 
reigned with justice and prudence, and bequeathed the 
sceptre to his brother Ethered. 

Thougli Ethered defended himself with great braveiy, 
yet, during the whole of his reign, he enjoyed no 
Af>f*' tranquility from the Danes, who landed in East 
Anglia, penetrated into the kingdom of Northum- 
berland, and seized the city of York. Alfred, the younger 
brother, assisted Ethered in all his enterprises against the 
enemy. The Danes were attacked by the forces under 
Ethered and Alfred ; and being defeated in an action, 
they sought shelter within the walls of Reading. Thence 
they infested the neighbouring country. An action soon 
after ensued at Aston, in Berkshire, where the English, 
through the good conduct of Alfred, obtained a victory. 
Another battle was fought at Basing, where the Danes 
were more successful. Amidst these disorders, Ethered 
died of a wound which he had received, and transferred 
his kingdom and the care of its defence to the illustrious 
Alfred, who was then twenty-two yeai*s of age. 

Alfred gave early proof of his abilities, by which, in the 
most difficult times, he saved his country from ruin^ 
Q^l* Pope Leo the Third predicted his future greatness, 
by giving him the royal unction, when Alfred was 
on a visit to the Roman pontiff. Being indulged in youth 
ful pleastires, his education was much neglected ; but the 
recital of some Saxon poems awakened his native genius; 
and he applied himself with diligence and success to the 
study of the Latin tongue. From these elegant pursuits, 
however, he was early recalled by the danger of his coun- 
try. Scarcely had he buried his brother, when he was 
obliged to take the field, in order to oppose the Danes, 



who had seized Wilton,* and A^ere ravaging the surround- 
ing country. He gave them battle, and was at first suc- 
cessful ; but j)ursuing his advantage too eagerly, he was 
oppressed by the superiority of numbers, and obliged to 
relinquish the field. Alfred, however, was still formida- 
ble ; and though he was supported only by the West 
Saxons, he obliged his enemies to conclude a treaty, in 
which they solemnly swore to evacuate his territories. 
The oath was taken and violated with equal facility ; and 
the Danes, without seeking any pretence, attacked Alfred's 
army, which they routed, and, marching westward, took 
possession of Exeter. Alfred collected new forces, and 
exerted such vigour, that he fought eight battles in one 
year, and obliged the enemy to engage that they would 
settle in some part of England, and not suff*er more of their 
countrymen to enter the kingdom. Whilst Alfred ex- 
pected the execution of this treaty, another body of Danes 
landed in this island ; and collecting all the scattered 
troops of their countryiuen, they seized Chippenham, and 
extended their ravages over Wiltshire. 

This last event broke the spirits of the Saxons, and re- 
duced them to despair. They believed themselves aban- 
doned by Heaven to destmction. Some left their country, 
and retired into Wales, or fled beyond the sea ; others 
submitted to the conquerors, in hopes of appeasing their 
fury bv a servile obedience ; and Alfred was obliged to re- 
linquisn the ensigns of royalty, and to seek shelter in the 
meanest disguises, from the pursuit of his enemies. He 
concealed himself under the habit of a peasant, and for 
some time lived in the house of a neatherd, who had for- 
merly been entrusted with the care of his cows. In this 
humiliating situation, it is said that the wife of the neat- 
herd, ignorant of the condition of her royal guest, and 
obsei*ving him one day busy by the fire-side, in trimming 
his bow and arrows, desired him to take care oi some 
cakes which were toasting, while she was employed in 
other domestic concerns. However, Alfred, who^e thoughts 
were differently engaged, forgot the trust ; and the good 
woman, on her return, finding her cakes burnt, rated the 
king veiy severely, and upbraided him with neglecting 
what he was ready enough to eat. 

* The real situation of Wilton has been much disputed 
2* 



is ( ^ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Alfred, finding that success had rendered his enemies 
more remiss, collected some of his retainers. In the centre 
of a bog, formed by the stagnated waters of the Thone and 
Parret, in Somersetshire, he found two acres of firm 
ground, where he built a habitation, which he rendered 
secure by fortifications, and still more by the unknown and 
inaccessible roads that led to it. This place he called 
iEthelingay, or the Isle of Nobles ; and thence he made 
frequent and unexpected sallies on the Danes, who often 
felt the vigom* of his arm, but knew not from what quarter 
the blow came. In this insulated place he was informed 
that Oddune, earl of Devonshire, had routed and killed 
Hubba the Dane, who had besieged him in his castle ol 
Kinwith, near the mouth of the river Tau ; and that he 
had got possession of the enchanted standard, or reafen^ 
«'o called from containing the figure of a raven, which the 
Danes believed to have been interwoven by the three sis- 
ters of Hinguar and Hubba, with magical incantations, 
and to express by the motions of its wings the success or 
failure of any entei*prise. 

When Alfred was informed of this successful resistance, 
he left his retreat ; but before he would assemble his sub- 
jects in arms, he resolved to inspect the situation of the 
enemy. Under the disguise of a harper, he entered their 
camp; his music obtained for him a welcome reception, 
and introduced him into the tent of their prince Guthrum ; 
and he was witness during several days to the supine secu- 
rity of the Danes, and their contempt to the English. 
Encouraged by what he observed, he sent private emis- 
saries to the most considerable of his friends, and sum- 
moned them to meet him with their followers at Brixton, 
on the borders of Selwood Forest. The English having 
experienced that submission only increased the insolence 
and rapacity of their conquerors, repaired to the place of 
rendezvous with alacrity, and received with shouts of 
transport a monarch whom they had fondly loved, and 
whom they had long concluded to have been dead. Al- 
fred immediately led them against the Danes, who, sur- 
prised to see an army of English, fled after a faint resis- 
tance, and suffered greatly in the pursuit : tlie remnant 
that escaped, were besieged by the victors in a fortified 
camp ; and being reduced to extreinity by hunger, they 
implored the clemency of Alfred, whose prudence con- 



ALFRED. /^ 19 

verted them from mortal enemies into faithful friends and 
confederates. He proposed to Guthrum and his followers 
to repeople the desolated parts of East Anglia and Nor- 
thumberland ; but he required from them as a pledge of 
their future sincerity, that they should embrace Christi- 
anity. The Danes complied ; and Guthrum received, as 
the adopted son of Alfred, the name of Athelstan. 

The success of this expedient seemed to correspond 
with Alfred's hopes : the greater part of the Danes settled 
peaceably in their new quarters ; the more turbulent pro- 
cm*ed subsistence by ravaging the coasts of France ; and 
England enjoyed for some years a state of tranquility. 
Alfred employed this period in establishing civil and mili- 
tary institutions, and in providing for the future defence 
of the island. He repaired the ruined cities ; built castles 
and fortresses ;- and established a regular militia. Sensible 
that the best means of defending an island is by a navy, 
he increased the shipping of his kingdom both in number 
and strength, and trained his subjects to maritime con 
flicts. He stationed his vessels with such judgment as 
continually to intercept the Danish ships either before or 
after they had landed their troops ; and by this means he 
repelled several inroads of the Danes. 

At length Hastings, the celebrated Danish chief, having 
ravaged all the provinces of France, along the Loire and 
the Seine, appeared off the coast of Kent with three hun- 
dred and thirty sail ; where the greater part of the Danes 
disembarked, and seized the fort of Apuldore. Hastings 
himself, with a fleet of eighty sail, entered the Thames, 
and fortifying Milton in Kent, spread his forces over the 
country, and committed the most dreadful ravages. Al- 
fred, on the first alarm of this descent, hastened with a 
chosen band to the defence of his people ; and collecting 
all the armed militia, he appeared in the field with a force 
superior to that of the enemy. The invaders, instead of 
increasing their spoil, were obliged to seek refuge in their 
fortifications. Tired of this situation, the Danes at Apul- 
dore suddenly left their encampment, and attempted to 
march towards the Thames, and to penetrate into the heart 
of the kingdom ; but Alfred, whose vigilance they could 
not escape, encountered and defeated them at Farnham. 
They fled to their ships, and escaped to Mersey in Essex, 
wheie they erected new works for their protection. Has- 



20 ') HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

tirgs attempted a similar movement at the same time, and 
vvitli the same success ; after leaving Milton, he was glad 
to find refuge at Bamflete, near the isle of Canvey, where 
he threw up fortifications for his defence. 

I'rom these invaders the attention of Alfred was soon 
distracted b.y another enemy. Guthrum was now dead ; 
and his followers, encouraged by the appearance of so 
great a body of their countrymen, revolted against the 
authority of Alfred. They embarked on board of two 
hundred and forty vessels, and appeared before Ex»eter, 
in the west of England. Alfred immedi&ttely marched to 
the west, and suddenly attacking them, defeated them, 
and pursued them to their sliips with great slaughter. In 
another attempt on the coast of Sussex, they were again 
repulsed, and some of their ships taken. Discouraged by 
these difficulties, they embarked, and returned to their 
settlements in Northumberland. 

In the mean time, the Danes in Essex, having quitted 
their retreat, and united their forces under the command 
of Hastings, ravaged the inland country. The English 
army left in London attacked the Danish intrenchments 
at Bamflete, overpowered the garrison, and carried ofi*the 
wife and two sons of Hastings. Alfred restored the cap- 
tives to the Danish chief, on condition that he should quit 
the kingdom, to which he readily assented. 

However, many of the Danes refused to follow Hastings. 
Great numbers of them seized and fortified Shobury, at 
the mouth of the Thames ; and leaving a garrison there, 
they marched to Boddington, in the county of Gloucester, 
where they were reinforced by the Welsh, and erected 
fortifications for their protection. Alfred surrounded them 
with his whole force. After having endured the extremi- 
ties of famine, they attacked the English, and a small 
number of them effected their escape ; but most of them 
being taken, they were tried at Winchester, and hanged 
as public robbers. 

This well-timed severity restored tranquility to Eng- 
land, and produced security to the government. Not only 
the East-Anglian and Northumberland Danes, but the 
Welsh, acknowledged the authority of Alfred. By pru- 
dence, by justice, and by valour, he had now established 
his sovereignty over all the southern parts of the island, 
from the English channel to the frontiers of Scotland ; 



ALFRED. U\ 

wUen, in the vigour of his age, and in the full possession 
of his faculties, he expired, after a glorious reign of twen- 
ty-nine years and a half, in which he had deservedly at- 
tained the appellation of Great, and the title of founder 
of the English monarchy. 

The character of Alfred, both in private and public life, 
is almost unrivalled in the annals of any age or nation. 
His virtues were so happily tempered together, and so 
justly blended, that each prevented the other from exceed- 
ing its proper boundaries. He reconciled the most enter- 
prising spirit with the greatest moderation ; the most se- 
vere justice with the gentlest lenity ; the highest capacity 
and inclination for science, with the most shining talents 
for action. His civil and his military virtues are almost 
equally the objects of our admiration ; and nature, also, 
as if so bright a production of her skill should be set in 
the fairest light, had bestowed on him every personal 
grace and accomplishment. 

The martial exploits of Alfred afford only an imperfect 
idea of his merit. His civil institutions, many of which 
still exist, and his encouragement of the arts and sciences, 
form the most prominent features of his reign. The vio- 
lence and rapacity of the Danes had subverted all order 
throughout England, and introduced the greatest anarchy 
and confusion. To provide a remedy for the evils which 
their licentiousness had occasioned, and to render the 
execution of justice strict and regular, Alfred divided the 
Idngdom into counties ; these he subdivided into hundreds, 
and the hundreds into tithings. Ten householders farmed 
a tithing, who were answerable for each other's conduct, 
and over whom a headborough or borsholder was appoint- 
ed to preside. Every man was obliged to register himself 
in some tithing ; and none could change his habitation 
without a certificate from the headborough of the tithing 
to which he belonged. 

When any person had been guilty of a crime, the head- 
borough was summoned to answer for him ; and if the 
headborough was unwilling to be surety for his appear 
ance, the criminal was committed to prison till his trial. 
If the criminal fled, either before or after finding sureties, 
the headborough and tithing w^ere exposed to the penalties 
of the law. Thirty-one days were allowed them for pro- 
ducing the criminal. If the time elapsed before they 



22 HISTORY OF ENGLAND- 

could find him, the headborough and two other members 
of the tithing were obHged to appear, and together with 
three chief members of three neit,hbom'ing tithings, con- 
sisting of twelve in all, swear that the tithing was free from 
all privity both of the crime and of the escape of the crimi- 
nal. If the headborough could not produce such a num- 
ber of witnesses to their innocence,- the tithing was compel- 
led to pay a fine to the king. This institution obliged 
every man carefully to observe the conduct of his neigh- 
bours, and was a kind of surety for their behaviour. 

In the admin>3tration of justice, the headborough sum- 
moned his tithing to assist him in deciding any trivial 
difi'erence which occurred among the members. In affairs 
of greater moment, or in controversies between members 
of different tithings, the cause was brought before the 
hundred, which consisted of ten tithings, or one hundred 
families, and which was regularly assembled once in four 
weeks. In their method of decision we trace the origin 
of juries. Twelve freeholders were chosen, who, together 
with the presiding magistrate of that division, were sworn 
to administer impartial justice in the cause submitted to 
their jurisdiction. 

The county court, which met twice a year, and consist- 
ed of the freeholders of the county, was superior to that 
of the hundred, from which it received appeals. The 
bishop with the aldermen presided in it. The latter origi- 
nally possessed both the civil and military authority ; but 
Alfred, sensible that this conjunction of power might 
render the nobility dangerous, appointed a sheriff in each 
county, who was equal with the aldermen in his judicial 
function, and whose office also consisted in guarding the 
rights of the crown from violation, and in levying the fines. 
In default of justice in these courts, an appeal lay to the 
king in council ; but finding that his time would be entirely 
engrossed in hearing these appeals, Alfred took care to 
correct the ignorance or corruption of inferior magistrates, 
and to instruct his nobility in letters and laws. To guide 
them in the administration of justice, he framed a code 
of laws, which, though now lost, long sei-ved as the basis 
of English jurisprudence, and is generally deemed the 
origin of what is now denominated the common law. 

To encourage learning among his subjects was no less 
the* care of this illustrious prince. When he came to the 



ALFRED. 23 

throne, he found the EngHsh sunk into the grossest igno- 
ranee. Alfred himself complains, that on his accession 
he did not know one person, south of the Thames, who 
could so much as interpret the Latin sei-vice ; and very 
few even in the northern parts who had reached that })itch 
of erudition. To supply this defect, he invited the most 
celebrated scholars from all parts of Europe ; he esta- 
blished schools ; and he founded, or at least revived, the 
university of Oxford, which he endowed with various privi- 
leges, revenues, and immunities. He enjoined by law^all 
freeholders possessed of two hides, or about two hundred 
acres of laud, to send their children to school for instruc- 
tion ; and he gave preferment, both in church and state, 
to such only as had made some proficiency in knowledge. 
However, the most effectual expedient employed by 
Alfred for the encouragement of learning, was his own 
example. He usually divided his time into three equal 
portions : one was employed in exercise and the refection 
of his body ; another, in the despatch of business ; and 
a third, in study and devotion. Sensible that the people 
were incapable of speculative instruction, he conveyed his 
morality by apologues, parables, stories, and apothegms, 
couched in poetry. He translated the fables of iEsop, 
the histories of Orosius and Bede, and Boethius on the 
consolation of Philosophy ; nor did he deem it derogatory 
from his high character of sovereign, legislator, warrior and 
politician, thus to lead the way in literary pursuits. 

This prince was also an encourager of the mechanical 
arts. He invited industrious foreigners to repeople his 
country, which had been desolated by the ravages of the 
Danes. He introduced and encouraged manufactures: 
he prompted men of activity to engage in navigation and 
commerce ; he appropriated a seventh part of his own 
revenue to rebuild the ruined cities, castles, palaces, and 
monasteries ; and such was the impression of his sagaci- 
ty and virtue, that he was regarded by foreigners, as well 
as by his own subjects, as one of the greatest princes tliat 
hadVppeared on the throne of the world. 

Of the two surviving sons of Alfred by his wife Ethels- 
^ witha, the daughter of a Mercian earl, Ethelwald 

QQ-j * the younger inherited his father's passion for let- 
ters, and lived a private life ; but Edward the elder 
succeeded to the military talents as well as to the throne 



24 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

of Alfred. Ethel wald, the consin-german of Edward, and 
son of Ethelbert, the elder brother of Alfred, insisted on 
a title to the throne preferable to that of Edward. Ethel- 
wald, however, was obliged to flee ; but connecting his 
interests with those of the Danes, he obtained the assist- 
ance of those freebooters, and returned. An action was 
fought near Bury, in which the Kentish men vigorously 
opposed the Danes, who lost their bravest leaders, and 
among the rest Ethelwald himself. The reign of Edward 
was an incessant but successful struggle against the North- 
umbrians, the East- Angles, and the Danes. lie gain d 
two signal victories at Telmsford and Naldon, compelled 
the Danes to retire into France, and obliged the East- An- 
gles to swear allegiance to him. After a :rbulent but 
successful reign of twenty-four years, his kingdom d 3- 
volved on Athelstan, his natural son. 

The mature age of Athelstan obtained for him the pre- 
ference over the legitimate children of Edward; 
q;^-,* and, amidst storms of civil conflict and foreign 
war, he proved himself not unworthy of it. He 
crushed Alfred, a powerful nobleman, who had conspired 
against him ; he entered Scotland with an army, and ex- 
torted the submission of Con'stantine its king ; he reduced 
to obedience tlie turbulent Northumbrians ; and he de- 
feated with considerable slaughter the Danes and Welsh. 
Athelstan was regarded as an able and active prince ; and 
the remarkable law which he enacted, that a merchant, 
who had made three long sea voyages, should be admitted 
to the rank of thane or gentleman, is a proof of great 
liberality of mind. He died at Gloucester, after a reign 
of sixteen years, and was succeeded by Edmund, his le- 
gitimate brother. 

The reign of Edmund was shon. and his death violent. 
He chastised the Northumbrians, who seized every 
%A^ opportunity of rebelling ; and he conquered Cum- 
berland from the Britons, and conferred it on Mal- 
colm, king of Scotland, on condition that he should do 
him homage for it, and protect the north from the incur- 
sions of the Danes. He perished by the hand of Leolf, 
a notorious robber, whom he had sentenced to banishment, 
and who presumed to enter the royal apartment. The 
king, enrasred at this insolence, ordered him to leave the 
room ; and on his refusing to obey, Edmund, naturally 




Edgar and Elfrida. 




Henry JL scourged at BeckeVs Tomb, 



ATHELSTAN — EDMUND-— EDREt). 25 

choleric, seized him by the hair, when the ruf&an drew a 
dagger, and gave him a mortal wound. 

Edred, the brother and successor of Edmund, had no 
sooner ascended the throne, than he found it ne- 
cessary to oppose the incursions of the Northum- ^,^' 
brian Danes, and to oblige Malcolm, king of Scot- 
land, to renew his homage for the lands which he held 
in England* Edred though not destitute of courage, 
was an abject slave 1 j superstition; and he abandoned his 
consience to Dunstan, abbot of Glastonbury, who, under the 
appearance of sanctity, veiled the most violent ambition. 

Dunstan practised the most rigid austerity, and pre- 
tended to have frequent conflicts with the devil ; in one 
of which he seized the devil by the nose with a pair of 
red-hot pincers, and held him till the whole neighbour- 
hood resounded v/ith his bellowings. Supported by this 
affected character, Dunstan obtained an entire ascendancy 
over Edred, and was placed at the head of the treasury. 
Sensible that he owed his advancement to the austerity 
of his life, he became a partisan of the rigid monastic 
rules. The celibacy of priests was deemed meritorious 
by the church of Rome ; and the pope undertook to make 
all the clergy in the western world renounce the privilege 
of marrying. In England, Dunstan seconded his efforts, 
and introduced the reformation into the convents of Glas- 
tonbury and Abingdon ; but the secular clergy, who were 
numerous and rich, defended their privileges against this 
usurpation. During the ferment occasioned by these re- 
ligious controversies, Edred departed this life. 

The children of Edred being too young to bear the 

weight of government, the throne was filled by his 
gV^' nephew Edwy, who was adorned with a graceful 

person, and possessed the most promising virtues. 
Contrary to the advice of his wisest counsellors, he unfor- 
tunately married Elgiva, a beautiful princess of the royal 
blood, who was within the degrees of affinity prohibited by 
the canon law. This occasioned the invectives of the 
monks ; and the king found reason to repent his creating 
such dangerous enemies. On the day of his coronation, 
whilst his nobility were indulging in riot and disorder, 
Edwy retired from the noisy revelry of the table, to taste 
the pleasures of love with Elgiva. Dunstan, conjecturing 
the reason of the king's retreat, burst into the apartment, 
«3 



26 ^ HISTORY OF ENULANB* 

and with every opprobrious epithet that could be applied 
to her sex, thrust the queen from her royal consort. To 
avenge this public insult, Edwy accused Dunstan of mal- 
versation in the treasury, and banished him the kingdom* 
But Dunstan's party were not inactive during his absence : 
they exclaimed against the impiety of the king and queen, 
and proceeded to still more outrageous acts of violence. 
Archbishop Odo, with a party of soldiers, seized the 
queen, burned her face with a hot iron, and forcibly car- 
ried her into Ireland. Edwy, finding himself unable to 
resist, was obliged to consent to his divorce. The un- 
happy Elgiva, attempting to return to her husband, was 
seized by the infernal Odo, who, with the malice of a de- 
mon, caused her to be hamstrung, of which she died a few 
days after, at Gloucester, in the sharpest torments. 

Not satiated with this horrible vengeance, the monks 
encouraged Edgar, the younger brother of Edwy, to aspire 
to the throne, and soon put him in possession of Mercia, 
Northumberland, and East-Anglia. Dunstan returned to 
England, to assist Edgar and his party; and, after Odo's 
death, was installed in the see of Canterbury. The un- 
happy Edwy was excommunicated, and pursued with un- 
relenting vengeance; but his death, which happened soon 
after, freed him from monki'sh persecution, and gave Ed- 
gar peaceable possession of the throne. 

Edgar discovered great abilities in the government oj 
the kingdom ; and his reign is one of the most for- 
tunate in Englisli histoiy. By his vigorous prepa- qitq* 
rations for war, he ensured peace ; and he awed 
equally the foreign and domestic Danes. The neigh- 
bouring sovereigns, the kings of Scotland, the princes of 
Wales, of the Isle of Man, of the Orkneys, and of Ireland, 
were reduced to pay him submission ; but the chief means 
by which he maintained his authority, was his assiduous 
yet forced respect to the fanatical and inhuman Dunstan 
and his kindred monks. 

These repaid his politic concessions by the highest 
panegyrics ; and Edgar has been represented by them not 
only as a consummate statesman and a great prince, but 
as a man of strict virtue, and even a saint. Nothing, how- 
ever, could more fully prove, that the praises bestowed 
on Ed2:ar, with respect to the sanctity of his life, were ex- 
aggerated and unmerited, than his immoral and licentious 



EDGAR. 27 

conduct. He broke into a convent, carried off Editha, a 
nun, by force, and even committed violence on her per 
son. For this crime, Dunstan required him merely to 
abstain from wearing his crown during seven years. At 
Andover, too, Edgar, struck with the beauty of the daugh- 
ter of a nobleman, in whose house he lodged, unceremo- 
niously went to her mother, and desired that the young 
lady might pass that very night with hin^u The mother, 
knowing the impetuosity of the king's temper, pretended a 
submission to his w^ill ; but she secretly ordered a waiting- 
maid, named Elflede, to steal into the king's bed, after the 
company had retired to rest. The dawn of light disco- 
vered the deceit; but Edgar, well pleased with his com- 
panion, expressed no displeasure on account of the fraud ; 
and Elflede became his favourite mistress, until his crimi- 
nal marriage with Elfrida. 

This lady was daughter and heir of Olgar, earl of De- 
vonshire, and all England resounded with the praises of 
her beauty. The curiosity of Edgar was excited ; and he 
resolved to marry her, if he found her charms answerable 
to the report. He communicated his intentions to Athel- 
wold, his favourite, whom he deputed to bring him an au- 
thentic account of her person. Athelwold found that 
general report had not exaggerated the beauty of Elfrida ; 
and being smitten with her charms, he determined to sa- 
crifice to his love for her the fidelity which he owed to his 
master. He returned to Edgar, and assured him, that 
the birth and riches of Elfrida had been the cause of the 
admiration paid to her, and that she possessed no charms 
of superior lustre. After some time, he intimated to the 
king, that, though her parentage and fortune had not de- 
ceived him with regard to her beauty, she would be an 
advantageous match for him, and might, by her birth and 
riches, make him sufficient compensation for the homeli- 
ness of her person. Edgar, pleased with an opportunity 
of establishing his favourite's fortune, forwarded his suc- 
cess by a recommendation to the parents of Elfrida, whose 
hand Athelwold soon obtained. 

Envy, which ever pursues the favourite of a king, spee- 
dily informed Edgar of the truth. However, before he 
avenged the treachery of Atlielwold, he resolved to satisfy 
himself of his guilt. He told him that he intended to 
visit his castle, and to be introduced to his wife. Athel 



28 ^ A HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

wold, unable to refuse this honour, revealed the whole 
transaction to Elfrida, and conjured her to conceal from 
Edgar that beauty which had seduced him from his fide- 
lity. Elfrida promised a compliance, but appeared before 
the king in aU her charms, and excited in his bosom at 
once the passions of desire and revenge. However, he 
dissembled his emotions, till he had an opportunity, in 
hunting, of stabbing Athelwold, and soon after publicly 
espoused Elfrida. 

Edgar died after a reign of sixteen years, and was suc- 
ceeded by Edward, whom he had by his first inat- 
g,^^* riage with the daughter of earl Ordmer. This 
prince was anointed and crowned by Dunstan at 
Kingston, and lived four years after his accession. His 
death alone was memorable and tragical. Though his 
step-mother had opposed his succession, and had raised 
a party in favour of her own son Ethelred, yet Edward 
had always shown her marks of regard- He was hunting 
one day near Corfe-castle, in Dorsetshire, where Elfrida 
resided, and paying her a visit without attendants, he pre- 
sented her with the opportunity for which she had so long 
\7ished. After remounting his horse, he desired some 
liquor to be brought him ; and whilst he was holding the 
cup to his mouth, a servant of Elfrida approached, and 
stabbed him behind. The prince, feeling himself wound- 
ed, set spurs to his horse ; but faint with the loss of blood, 
he fell from the saddle, and his foot being entangled in 
the stirrup, he was dragged along until he expired. His 
youth and innocence obtained for him the appellation of 
Martyr. 

Ethelred, the son of Edgar and Elfrida, reaped the ad- 
vantage of his mother's crime, and succeeded to the 
throne. He was a weak and irresolute monarch, q-,Q* 
and obtained the appellation of Unready. During 
his reign the Danes resumed their ravages ; and Ethelred 
exhibited neither courage nor ability sufficient to repel so 
formidable an enemy. A shameful composition was made 
with Sweyn, king of Denmark ; and the English monarch 
consented to the disgraceful badge of tribute. Ethelred, 
desirous of forming a closer alliance with the pirates of 
the north, solicited and received in marriage Emma, sistei 
of Richard the second, duke of Normandy, whose family 
sprang from the Danish adventurer, Rollo. 



ETHELKED ~ "^ 29 

Whilst their sovereign courted the alliance, the English 
groaned beneath the rapacity and arrogance of the north- 
ern invaders. Sensible of the superiority of these hardy 
warriors, the English princes had been accustomed to re- 
tain in their pay bodies of Danish troops. These merce- 
naries, by their arts and military character, had rendered 
themselves so agreeable to the fair sex, that they debauched 
the wives and daughters of the English ; but what mosf 
provoked the inhabitants was, that instead of defending 
them against invaders, they were always ready to join the 
foreign foe. This animosity inspired Ethelred with the 
resolution of massacreinof the Danes throuo-hout his do- 
minions. Secret orders were despatched to commence 
the execution every where the same day ; and so well 
were these orders executed, that the rag'e of the 
100^ people, sanctioned by authority, distinguii^^hed 
yy 7*0 not between innocence and guilt, and spared 
' neither sex nor as^e. 

o 

This barbarous policy, however, did not remain long 
unrevenged. Sweyn and his Danes, who wanted 
100'^ only a pretence for invading England, appeared 
off the westei^n coast. Exeter first fell into their 
hands, from the negligence or treachery of Earl Hough, 
a Norman, who had been made governor of that city. 
Thence they extended their devastations over the country. 
The calamities of the English were augmented by famine ; 
and they submitted to the infamy of purchasing a nominal 
])eace, by the payment of thirty thousand pounds. The 
dissentions of the English prevented them from opposing 
the Danes, who still continued their depredations, and 
from whom they purchased another peace at the expense 
of forty-eight thousand pounds. The Danes, however, 
disregarded all engagements, and extorted new contribu- 
tions. The English nobility, driven to despair, swore alle- 
giance to Sweyn, and delivered him hostages for their 
fidelity. Ethelred, equally afraid of the violence of the 
enemy and the treachery of his own subjects, fled into 
Normandy, whither he had sent before him Emma, and 
her two sons, Alfred and Edward. 

The king had not been more than six weeks in Nor- 
mandy, when he was informed of the death of 
1014 ^^^y*^* '^^® English prelates and nobles sent a 
deputation into Normandy, and invited Ethelred 
3* 



30 ' fs^ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

to resume the royal authority. But on his return they 
soon perceived that adversity had not corrected his errors : 
he displayed the same incapacity, indolence, cowardice, 
and credulity. In Canute, the son and successor of Sweyn, 
the English found an enemy no less formidahle than his 
father. After ravaging the eastern and southern coast, 
lie burst into the counties of Dorset, Wilts, and Somerset ; 
where an army was assembled against him under the com- 
mand of prince Edmond, the eldest son of Ethelred. The 
Enghsh soldiers demanded the presence of their sovereign ; 
and upon his refusal to take the field, they became dis- 
couraged, and gradually retired from the camp. Edmond, 
after some fruitless expeditions into the north, retired to 
London, which he found in confusion, from the death of 
the king, who had expired, after an inglorious reign of 
thirty-five years. He left two sons by his first marriage, 
Edmond who succeeded him, and Edwy who was mur- 
dered by Canute ; and two more by his second marriage, 
Alfred and Edward, who, upon the death of Ethelred, 
were conveyed into Normandy by queen Emma. 

Edmond, who from his hardy valour obtained the sur- 
name of Ironside, was inferior in abilities only to 
the difficulties of the time. In two battles he en- int/^ 
countered the Danes with skill and courage ; but 
in both he was defeated or betrayed by the enmity or per- 
fidy of Edri c, duke of Mercia. The indefatigable Edmond, 
however, had still resources : he assembled a new army at 
Gloucester, and was again prepared to dispute the field; 
when the Danish and English nobility, equally harassed, 
obliged their kings to submit to a compromise, and to por- 
tion the kingdom. Canute reserved to himself the northern 
part, and relinquished the southern to Edmond. This 
prince survived the treaty about a month ; he was mur- 
dered at Oxford by two of his chamberlains, accomplices 
of Edric, who thereby made way for the succession of 
Canute the Dane to the crown of England. 

Canute, at the head of a great force, was ready to take 
advantage of the minority of Alfred and Edward, 
the two sons of Edmond. To cover, however, his in .7 
injustice under plausible pretences, before he seized 
the dominions of the English princes, he summoned a 
general assembly of the states, in order to fix the succes- 
sion of the kingdom. He here suborned some nobles 



CANUTE. 31 

to depose, that, in the treaty of Gloucester, it had been 
vei bally agreed, in case of Edmond's death, to name Ca- 
nute successor to his dominions, or tutor to his children ; 
and this evidence, supported by the great power of Canute, 
determined the states to vest in him the government of the 
kingdom. Jealous of the two princes, he sent them to his 
ally, the king of Sweden, whom he desired to free him by 
their death from all future anxiety. The Swedish monarch 
was too humane to comply with this cruel request ; but 
afraid of a quari'el with Canute if he protected the young 
princes, he conveyed them to Solomon, king of Hungary. 
The elder died without issue ; but Edward, the younger, 
married Agatha, the sister-in-law of Solomon, and daugh- 
ter of the emperor Henry H., by whom he had Edgar 
Atheling, Margaret, afterwards queen of Scotland, and 
Christina, who became a nun. 

Canute no sooner found himself confirmed on the throne, 
than he put to death the nobles on whose fidelity he could 
not rely ; and among these was the traitor Edric, who had 
presumed to reproach him with his services. But, like a 
wise prince, he was determined that the English, now de- 
prived of all their dangerous leaders, should be reconciled 
to the Danes by the justice and impartiality of his govern- 
ment. He restored the Saxon customs in the general 
assembly of the states ; he made no distinction between 
Danes and Enghsh in the distribution of justice ; and the 
victors were gradually incorporated with the vanquished. 
Though the distance of Edmond's children was regarded 
by Canute as the greatest security to his government, yet 
he dreaded the pretensions of Alfred and Edward, who 
were supported by their uncle, Richard, duke of Normandy. 
To acquire the friendship of that prince, he paid his ad- 
dresses to his sister Emma ; and the widow of Ethelred 
consented to bestow her hand on the implacable enemy 
of her former hu^'^and, on condition that the children of 
their marriage should mount the English throne. 

After repelling the attacks of the king of Sweden, Ca- 
nute ip^aded and subdued Norway, of which he retained 
possession till his death. At leisure from war, he cast his 
'^iew towards that future existence, which it is so natural 
for the human mind, whether satiated by prosperity, or 
disgusted with adversity, to make the object of its atten- 
tion. Instead, however, of endeavouring to atone for the 



03 HISTOllY OF ENGLAND. 

crimes which he had committed by compensation to the 
injured, it was in building churches, in endowing monas- 
teries, and in a pilgrimage to Rome, that his penitence 
was displayed. Some of his courtiers affected to think 
his power uncontrollable,'* and that all things would be 
obedient to his command. Canute, sensible of their adu- 
lation, ordered his chair to be placed on the sea shore 
while the tide was rising ; and as the waters approached, 
he commanded them to retire, and to obey the voice of 
him who was lord of the ocean. But when the sea, still 
advancing towards him, began to wet his feet, he turned 
to his courtiers, and remarked to them, that every crea- 
ture in the universe is feeble and impotent, compared to 
that Almighty Being in whose hands are all the elements 
of nature, and who can say to the ocean, " Thus far shalt 
thou go, and no farther." 

Canute died at Shaftsbury, in the nineteenth year of 
his reign. Of his two sons by his first marriage, Sweyn 
had been crowned king of Norway, and Harold succeeded 
his father on the English throne ; and Hardicanute, who 
was his issue by Emma, was left in possession of the king- 
dom of Denmark, 

Though Harold succeeded to the throne of England 
agreeably to the will of his father, who considered 
it dangerous to leave a newly-conquered kingdom inor 
in the hands of so young a prince as Hardicanute ; 
yet this was a manifest violation of the treaty with the 
duke of Normandy, by which End^and-was assigned to 
the issue of Canute by Emma. Harold was favoured by 
the Danes, and Hardicanute by the Enghsh. The death 
of Harold, however, which happened four years after his 
accession, l<ift the succession open to his brother Hardi- 
canute. He expired, little regretted by his subjects, and 
distinguished only for his agility in running, by which he 
had gained the surname of Harefoot. 

Hardicanute, upon his arrival from the continent, was 
received with the most extravagant demonstrations 
of joy, and was acknowledged king both by the "^^^q 
Danes and the English. However, he soon lost 
the affections of the nation by his misconduct. At the 
nuptials of a Danish lord, which he had honoured with 
his presence, ~ Hardicanute died ; and this event once 




Assassination of Edward the Martyr. 




Canute reproving his Flatterers. 



HAROLD HARDICANUTE EDWARD. 33ia 

more presented to the English a favourable opportunilj of 
ihaking off the Danish yoke. 

The descendants of Edmond Ironside, the legitimate 
heirs to the crown, were at a distance in Hungary ; 
md as all delays might be dangerous, the vacant ■^'(^4^ 
chrone was offered to Edward, the son of Ethelred 
and Emma. His succession might have been opposed by 
earl Godwin, who had espoused the daughter of Canute, 
and whose power, alliances, and abilities, gave him a 
great influence ; but it was stipulated, that Edward should 
marry Editha, the daughter of Godwin. To this Edward 
consented, and was crowned king of England. 

, The long residence of Edward in Normandy, had 
attached him to the natives, Avho repaired to his court in 
great numbers, and who soon rendered their language, 
customs, and laws, fashionable in the kingdom. Their 
influence soon became disgusting to the English ; but 
above all, it excited the jealousy of Godwin. That pow- 
erful nobleman, besides being earl or duke of Wessex, 
had the counties of Kent and Sussex annexed to his go- 
vernment : his eldest son, Sweyn, possessed the same 
authority in the counties of Oxford, Berks, Gloucester, and 
Hereford ; and Harold, his second son, was duke of East 
Anglia, and at the same time governor of Essex. The 
king had indeed married the daughter of Godwin ; but 
the amiable qualities of Editha had never won the aftec- 
tion of her husband. It is even pretended that Edward 
abstained from all commerce of love with her ; and such 
a forbearance, though it obtained for the prince, from the 
monkish historians, the appellation of Saint and Confessor, 
coMld not but be noticed by the high-spirited Godwin. 

However, the influence of the Normans was the popular 
pretence for the disaftection of the duke of Wessex to the 
king and his government- Godwin raised the standard of 
rebellion ; but finding himself, from the desertion of hi« 
troops, incapable of opposing his sovereign, he fled to 
Flanders. Returning with a powerful fleet, which the 
earl of Flanders had permitted him to prepare in his har- 
bours, a new reconciliation took place, and the most ob- 
noxious of the Normans were banished. 

• Godwin's death, which happened soon after, devolved 
his government of Wessex, Sussex, Kent, and Essex, with 
his oflice of steward of the household, on his son Harold 



34 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

who was actuated by an ambition equal to that ol his 
father, and was superior to him in virtue and address. 
Edward, who felt the approach of age and infirmities, and 
had no issue himself, began to think of appointing a suc- 
cessor to his kingdom ; and, at length, he fixed his choice 
on his kinsman, William, duke of Normandy. 

This celebrated prince was natural son of Robert, duke 
of Normandy, by Harlotta, daughter of a tanner in Fa- 
laise. The illegitimacy of his biith had not prevented 
him from being acknowledged by the Normans as their 
duke ; and the qualities which he displayed in the field 
and the cabinet, encouraged his friends, and struck terror 
into his enemies. Having established tranquility in his own 
dominions, he visited England ; where he was received in 
a manner suitable to the reputation he had acquired, and 
to the obligations which Edward owed to his family. Soon 
after his return, he was informed of the king*s intentions 
in his favour ; and this fii'st opened the mind of William 
to entertain such ambitious hopes. Harold, however, 
opeidy aspired to the succession ; and Edward, feeble and 
irresolute, was afraid to declare either for or against him. 
In this state of uncertainty, the king was surprised by 
death, in the sixty-fifth year of his age, and the twenty- 
fifth of his reign. 

On the death of Edward, the last of the Saxon princes, 
Harold ascended the throne with little opposition ; 
and the whole nation seemed to acquiesce in his ^\\aa 
elevation. The duke of Normandy, however, re- 
ceived the intelligence with the greatest indignation. No 
sooner had he proclaimed his intention of attempting the 
conquest of England, than he found less difiaculty in com- 
pleting his levies, than in rejecting those who were desi- 
rous of serving under him. The duke of Normandy 
speedily assembled a fleet of three thousand vessels, in 
which to transport an army of sixty thousand men, whom 
he had selected from the numbers that courted his service. 
Among these were found the high names of the most illus 
trious nobles of Normandy, France, Brittany, and Flan- 
ders. To these bold chieftains William held up the spoils 
of England as the prize of their valour ; and pointing to 
the opposite shore, he told them, that there was the fiel() 
on which to erect trophies to their name, and fix their resi 
dence. The Norman armament arrived, without any n>3 



HAHOLD. 35 

tcrial loss, d\, Pevensey, in Sussex ; and the troops were 
disembarked without meeting any obstacle. The duke 
bmiself, as he leaped on shore, happened to stumble and 
fall ; but he had the presence of mind to turn the omen 
to his advantage, by calling aloud that he had taken pos- 
session of the country. 

Harold had just gained a great and important victory 
over the Norwegians, who had invaded the kingdom, when 
he received the intelligence that the duke of Normandy 
had landed with a numerous army in the south of Eng- 
land. He resolved to give battle in person, and soon 
appeared in sight of the enemy, who had pitched their 
camp at Hastings. So confident was Harold of success, 
feliat to a message sent by the duke, he replied, " The 
God of battles should soon be the arbiter of all their dif- 
ferences." 

Both parties immediately prepared for action ; but the 
English spent the night previous to the battle in 

■I'fxna riot and jollity ; whilst the Normans were occu- 
Of-iA pied in prayer and in the duties of religion. In 
* the morning, the duke assembled his principal 
officers, and harangued them in a set speech, in which he 
used every argument that could stimulate their courage 
and repel their fears. He then ordered the signal of bat- 
tle to be given ; and the whole army, moving at once, and 
singing the hymn or song of Roland, the famous peer of 
Charlemagne, advanced in order and with alacrity towards 
the English. 

Harold had seized the advantage of a rising ground, 
and having secured his flanks with trenches, he resolved 
to stand on the defensive, and to avoid an engagement 
v/ith the cavalry, in which he was inferior. The Kentish 
men were placed in the van, a post of honour which they 
always claimed as their due. The Londoners guarded 
the standard ; and the king himself, accompanied by his 
two valiant brothers, Gurth and Leofwin, dismounting 
from his horse, placed himself at the head of his infantiy, 
and expressed his resolution to conquer or to die. The 
first attack of the Normans w^as desperate, but was re- 
ceived with equal valour by the English ; and the former 
began to retreat, w^hen William hastened to their support 
with a select band. His presence restored the action ; 
and the English in their turn were obliged to retire. They 



36 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

rallied again, however, assisted by the advantage o^ the 
ground; w^hen William commanded his troops to allure 
the enemj from their position, by the appearance of iiight. 
The English followed precipitately into the plain ; where 
the Normans faced upon them, and forced them back with 
considerable slaughter. The artifice was repeated a se- 
cond time with the same success ; yet a great body of the 
Enghsh still maintained themselves in firm array, and 
seemed resolved to dispute the victory. Harold, however, 
was slain by an arrow, whilst combatting at the head ot 
his men ; and his two brothers sliared the same fate. The 
English, discouraged by the fall of their princes, fled on 
all sides ; and the darkness of the night contributed to 
save those who had survived the carnage of the battle. 

Thus was gained by William, duke of Normandy, the 
great and decisive victory of Hastings, after a battle foughl 
from morning to sun-set, in which the valour of the van- 
quished, as well as of the victors, was highly conspicuous. 
In this engagement nearly fifteen thousand Normans fell; 
and William had three horses killed under him. But the 
victory, however dearly purchased, was decisive, as it paid 
the price of a kingdom. The body of Harold was brought 
to William, who generously restored it without ransom to 
his mother. The Nonnan araiy gave thanks to heaven 
for their success ; and their prince pressed forward to 
secure the prize he had won. 



CHAP. HI. 

The Reigns of William the Conqueror^ William Riifus, 
IIen.>j J., and Stephen, 
As soon as William passed the Thames at Wal- 
lingford, Stigand, the primate, made submission to -tkr^r^ 
him : and before he came in sight of London, all 
the chief nobility entered his camp, and requested him to 
mount the throne, declaring that, as they had always been 
ruled by regal power, they desired to follow, in this in- 
stance, the example of their ancestors, and knew of no 
one more woithy than himself to hold the reins of govern- 
ment. Though William feigned to hesitate, and wished 
to obtaiii a more formal consent of the English nation, 
yet he dreaded the danger of delay, and accepted of the 
crown which was thus tendered him. He was consecra- 



WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. 37 

ted in Westminister abbey by Alfred, archbishop of York ; 
and he was attended, on this occasioji, by the most con- 
siderable of the nobility, both English and Norman. 

Thus, by a pretended destination of king Edward, and 
by an irregular election of the people, but still more by 
force of arms, William seated himself on the English 
throne. He introduced into England that strict execution 
of justice for which his government had been much cele- 
brated in Normandy. He confirmed the liberties and im- 
munities of London, and the other cities of England, and 
appeared desirous of replacing every thing on ancient 
establishments. His whole administration had the sem- 
blance of that of a lawful prince, not of a conqueror ; 
and the English began to flatter themselves that they had 
changed only the succession of their sovereigns, and not 
the form of their government. But amidst this confidence 
and friendship which he expressed for the English, the 
king took care to place all real power in the hands of the 
Normans. He built citadels in London, Winchester, Here- 
fo^d, Oxford, and the towns best situated for commanding 
the kingdom, all of which he garrisoned wuth Norman 
soldiers. 

By this mixture of vigour and lenity, William had sc 
soothed or humbled the minds of the English, that he 
thought he might safely revisit his native country, and en- 
joy the congratulations of his ancient subjects. Accord- 
ingly he set out for Normandy, and carried over with him 
the chief of the English nobles, who, whilst they served to 
grace his court by their magnificence, were in reality hos- 
tages for the fidelity of the nation. 

During the absence of William, aiiairs took a yerj un- 
favourable turn in England. It is probable that the Nor- 
mans, despising a people who had so easily submitted to 
the yoke, and envying their riches, were desirous of pro- 
voking them to rebellion. Certain, however, it is, that 
their arrogance multiplied discontents and complaints every 
where; that secret conspiracies were entered into against 
the government ; and that every thing seemed to threaten 
a revolution. The disaftection of the English daily increa- 
sed; and a secret conspiracy was entered into to perpe- 
trate in one day a general massacre of the Normans, like 
that which had been formerly executed upon the Danes. 

The return of the king, however, disconcerted the plans 
4 



38 / « HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

of the conspirators ; and the confiscation of their estates 
enabled the king still farther to gratify the rapacity of the 
Normans. Though naturally violent and severe in his 
temper, yet William still preserved the appearance of jus- 
tice in his oppression ; he restored to their inheritance such 
as had been arbitrarily expelled by the Normans during 
his absence ; but he imposed on the people the tax of 
Danegelt, which had been abolished by Edward the Con- 
fessor, and which was extremely odious to the nation. 

The English now clearly foresaw that the king intend- 
ed to rely entirely on the support and affection of foreign- 
ers, and that new forfeitures would be the result of any 
attempt to maintain their rights. Impressed with this 
dismal prospect many fled into foreign countries. Several 
of them settled in Scotland, and founded families which 
were afterwards illustrious in that countiy. But whilst 
the English suffered under these oppressions, the Normans 
found themselves surrounded by an agreeable people, and 
began to wish for tranquihty. However, the rage of the 
vanquished English served only to excite the attention of 
the king and his warlike chiefs to suppress every com- 
mencement of rebellion. 

William introduced into England the feudal law, which 
had some time been established in Normandy and France. 
He divided, with very few exceptions, besides the royal de- 
mesnes, all the lands of England into baronies ; and he 
conferred them with the reservation of stated services and 
payments, on the most considerable of his adventurers. 
These barons made a grant of a great part of their lands 
to other foreigners, under the denomination of knights or 
vassals, Avho paid their lord the same duty and submis- 
sion which the chieftains paid to their sovereign. The 
whole kingdom contained about 700 chief tenants, and 
60,215 knights-fees; and as none of the native English 
were admitted into the first rank, the few who retained 
their landed property were glad to be received into the 
gecond, under the protection of some powerful Norman. 

The doctrine which exalted the papacy above all humaii 
power, had gradually diffused itself from Rome ; but, at 
this time, was more prevalent in the southern, than in the 
northern kingdoms of Europe. Pope Alexander, who hao 
assisted William in his conquest, naturally expected thai 
he wcMild extend to England the reverence for this sacred 



WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. 39 

character, and break the spiritual independence of the 
Saxons. As soon, therefore, as the Norman prince was 
estabhshed on the throne, Alexander despatched to him 
Esmenfroy, bishop of Siam, as his legate: and the king, 
though he was probably led by principle to pay submission 
to Rome, determined to employ this incident as a means 
of serving his political purposes, and degraded those 
English prelates who were obnoxious to him. However, 
the superstitious spirit which became dangerous to some 
of William's successors, was checked by the abilities of 
that monarch. He prohibited his subjects from acknow- 
ledging any one for pope, whom he himself had not pre- 
viously received ; and he would not suffer any bulls or 
letters from Rome to be produced without the sanction of 
his authority. 

But the English had the mortification to find that the 
king had employed himself chiefly in oppressing them. 
He even formed a project of extinguishing the English 
language ; and, for that purpose, he ordered that in all 
schools youth should be instructed in the French tongue ; 
and that all law proceedings should be directed in the 
same idiom: hence arises that mixture of French which 
is at present found in the English tongue, and particularly 
in legal forms. 

William's eldest son, Robert, who was greedy of fame, 
impatient of contradiction, and without reserve in his 
friendships or enmities, had been flattered with the hope 
that his father, in possession of England, would resign to 
hirn the independent government of his continental do- 
minions. The king, indeed, had declared Robert his suc- 
cessor in Normandy, and had obliged the barons of that 
duchy to do homage to him as their future sovereign ; but 
when Robert demanded of his father the execution of 
those engagements, William refused; Robert openly de- 
clared his discontent, and cherished a violent jealousy 
against his two surviving brothers, William and Henry. 
Irritated by an imaginary affront, he quitted the court, and 
after an ineffectual attempt to surprise the citadel of Rou- 
en, fled to Hugh de Neufchatel, a powerful Norman baron, 
and openly levied war against his father. After a strug- 
gle of several years, a reconciliation was effected between 
the king and Robert, who soon after accompanied his 
father to England. 



40 , HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Having gained a respite from war, William employed 
his leism-e in an undertaking which does honour to his me- 
mory. He appointed commissioners to survey all the 
lands in the kingdom ] their extent in each district ; their 
proprietors, tenures, value ; and the quantity of meadow, 
pasture, wood, and arable land, which they contained. 
This monument, called Domesday Book, was perfected in 
six years, and is still preserved in the exchequer. 

The domestic happiness of William was again 
interrupted by the death of his consort Matilda, ij^,^o* 
whom he tenderly loved. He was involved in war 
with France, on account of the inroads into Normandy by 
some French barons on the frontiers. The displeasure of 
William was increased by some railleries which Philip of 
France had thrown out against his person. He was be- 
come corpulent, and had been detained in bed some time 
by sickness, when Philip jocularly expressed his surprise, 
that his brother of England should be so long in being de- 
livered of his big belly. This being reported to William, 
he sent Phillip word, that, as soon as he was up, he would 
present so many lights at Notre-Dame, as perhaps would 
give little pleasure to the king of France ; alluding to the 
usual practice at that time of women after child-birth. 
Immediately after his recovery, he led an army into the 
Isle of France, which he laid waste; and he also took 
and reduced to ashes the town of Mante. But the pro- 
gress of these hostilities was stopped by an accident, which 
put an end to his life.. His horse starting, he bruised his 
belly on the pommel of his saddle ; and being in a bad 
habit of body, and apprehending the consequences, he 
ordered himself to be carried to the monastery of St. Ger- 
vas. In his last moments, he was struck with remorse 
for the cruelties he had exercised, and endeavoured to 
make atonement by presents to churches and monasteries. 
He left Normandy and Maine to his eldest son, Robert ; 
and he wrote to Lanfranc, archbishop of Canterbuiy, de- 
siring him to crowii his second son, William. To Henry, 
his third son, he bequeathed nothing save the possessions 
of his mother Matilda ; but foretold that he would one 
day suqiass both his brothers, in power and opulence. 
Having made these dispositions, he expired, in the sixty- 
third year of his age, and in the twenty-first of his reign 
over England. 




Death of William Rufus, 



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Edward the first receiving the crown 



WILLIAM RUPUS. 41 

Few princes have been more fortunate than WilHam, or 
were better entitled to grandeur and prosperity, fmm the 
abihties and vigour of mind which he displayed in all his 
conduct. His spirit Avas bold and enterprising, yet guided 
by prudence ; and his ambition, though exhorbitaiit, gene- 
rally submitted to the dictates of sound policy. Though 
not insensible to generosity, he was hardened against com- 
passion ; and his conduct was too austere to render his 
government popular over a vanquished people, who felt 
him to be both a master and a tyrant. 

William, surnamed Mufus, from the red colour of his 
hair, was solemnly crowned king of England by the 
1 0S7 Pi'i^^^^^^ 5 ^1^^ about the same time Robert was ac- 
knowledged successor to Normandy. But the barons, 
who possessed estates both in England and Normandy, were 
uneasy at the separation of those territories ; they respect- 
ed the claim of primogeniture in Robert, and they pre- 
ferred his open and generous nature to the haughty and 
tyrannical disposition of his brother. A conspiracy, there- 
fore, was formed against William, who, conscious of his 
danger, endeavoured to conciliate the affections of the 
English, by promises of futm-e lenity, and the indulgence 
of hunting in the royal forests. The English espoused the 
cause of William, who marched an army into Kent, and 
reduced the fortresses of Pevensey and Rochester, which 
had been seized by his uncles. This success, together with 
the indolent conduct of -Robert, broke all the hopes of the 
rebels ; some few of whom received a pardon, but the 
greater part were attainted, and their estates confiscated. 

But the noise of the petty wars and commotions sunk 
in the tumult of the crusades, which engrossed the atten- 
tion and agitated the hearts of the principal nations of 
Europe. Peter the Hermit, a native of Amiens in Pi- 
cardy, had made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, then in 
possession of the Turks. Deeply affected with the dan- 
gers to which that act of piety now exposed the pilgrims, 
he entertained the design of leading against the Moslems 
the hardy warriors of the west. By permission of the pope, 
Martin the Second, he preached the crusade over Europe; 
and men of all ranks flew to arms, with the greatest alacri- 
ty, for the purpose of rescuing the Holy Land from the 
infidels. The sign of the cross became the badge of 
union and was affixed on their right shoulder, by all who 
4* 



42 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

enlisted themselves in this sacred warfare. Such was the 
general ardour, that while the youthful and vigorous took 
up arms, the infirm and aged contributed to the expediti'^n 
by presents and money. A promiscuous, disorderly mul- 
titude of 300,000, impatient to commence operations, under 
the conduct of Peter the Hermit, attempted to penetrate 
through Hungary and Bulgaria to Constantinople, and 
perished by disease, by famine, and the sword. These 
were followed by more numerous and better disciphned 
armies, which, after passing the streights at Constantino- 
ple, were mustered in the plains of Asia, and amounted 
to the number of 700,000 combatants. 

Robert duke of Normandy, impelled by the bravery and 
mistaken generosity of his spirit, had early engaged in the 
crusade ; but being destitute of money, he offered to mort- 
gage, or rather sell his dominions, to his brother William, 
for the inadequate sum of ten thousand marks. The bar- 
gain was soon concluded ; and v/hilst Robert set out with 
a magnificent train for the Holy Land, William possessed 
himself of Normandy, and thus reunited beneath his 
authority the extensive dominions of his father. 

The cession of Normandy and Maine extended the do- 
minions, but, on account of the unsettled state of those 
countries, weakened the power of William. The Norman 
nobles were men of independent minds, and were support- 
ed by the French king in all their insurrections. Helic, 
lord of LeFleche, a smalltown in Anjou, obliged William 
to undertake several expeditions, before he could prevail 
over a petty baron, who had acquired the confidence and 
affections of the inhabitants of Maine. 

However, the king was not less desirous of extending 
his dominions. William, earl of Poictiers and duke of 
Guienne, inflamed with the spirit of adventure, determi- 
ned to join the crusaders ; but wanting money to forward 
the preparations, he offered to mortgage his dominions to 
the king of England. This proposal was accepted by the 
king, who had prepared a fleet and army to escort the 
money and to take possession of the rich provinces of 
Poictiers and Guienne, when an accident pxtt an end to 
all his ambitious projects and views of aggrandizement. 
He was engaged in the New Forest in hunting, accompa- 
nied by Walter Tyrrel, a French gentleman, remarkable 
for his skill in archery ; and as William dismounted after 



HfeNRV i. 43 

a chase, Tyrrel, impatient of showing his dexterity, let fly 
an arrow at a stag, which suddenly started before him. 
The arrow glancing from a tree, struck the king in the 
breast, and instantly killed him. Tyrrel, fearful of suspi-^ 
cions Avhich perhaps he was conscious of incurring, with- 
out informing the royal attendants, gained the sea shore, 
embarked for France, and joined the crusade in an expe- 
dition to Jerusalem, as a penance for this involuntary crime. 
William was perfidious and oppressive ; and the extremes 
of prodigality and rapacity, which were reconciled in him, 
had long estranged from him the hearts of his subjects. 
The chief monuments which perpetuate his name are the 
Tower, Westminister Hall, and London Bridge. 

Prince Henry was hunting with Riifus in the New Fo- 
rest, when that monarch was killed ; and, hasten- 
1*100 ^^^ ^^ Winchester, he extorted by threats the royal 
treasure from William de Breteuil, the keeper. 
Pursuing his journey to London, and having assembled 
some noblemen and prelates, whom his address or hbe-'- 
rality gained to his side, he was saluted king ; and in less 
than three days after his brother's death, he was solemnly 
crowned by Maurice, bishop of London. 

To maintain the dignity which he had thus usurped, 
Henry resolved to court, by fair professions at least, the 
favour of his subjects. He passed a charter, which was 
framed to remedy many of the grievous oppressions that 
had been complained of duping the reigns of his father and 
brother. He espoused Matilda, daugliter of Malcolm the 
Third, king of Scotland, and niece to Edgar Atheling ; 
and his marriage with a Saxon princess endeared him to 
the English, and tended to establish him on the throne. 

RolDcrt returned to Normandy about a month after the 
death of his brother William. After establishing his au- 
thority over Normandy, he made preparations for possess- 
ing himself of England, of which he had been so unjustly 
defrauded. The two armies lay in sight of each other for 
several days without coming to action. It was, however, 
agreed, that Robert, in lieu of his pretensions to England, 
should receive an annual pension of 3000 marks ; that if 
either of the princes died without issue, the survivor should 
succeed to his dominions ; and that the adherents of each 
should be pardoned. 

Although plunged into the most dissolute pleasures, or 



14 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

abandoned to the most womanish superstitions, Robert 
neglected the government of his duchy ; and Normandy 
became a scene of violence and depredation. To avail 
himself of these disorders, Henry raised a numerous army, 
with which he invaded Normandy. He took Bayeuk by 
storm, and was admitted into Caen by the inhabitants. 
Robert^ roused at last from his lethargy, advanced to meet 
him, w^ith a view of terminating their quarrels in a deci- 
sive battle ; he resumed his wonted spirit ; he animated 
his troops by his example, and threw the English into dis- 
order : but when he had the fairest prospects of victoiy, 
the treachery and flight of one of his generals occasioned 
the total defeat of his army. Robert and ten thousand 
of his followers were made prisoners. Normandy sub- 
mitted to the victors ; and the unfortunate prince was 
carried by Henry to England, and detained in prison du- 
ring the remainder of his life in the castle of GardifF, in 
Glamorganshire. 

The conquest of Normandy seemed to establish the 
throne of Henry ; but his prosperity was clouded by a 
severe domestic calamity. His only son, William, had 
reached his eighteenth year ; he had been affianced to the 
daughter of Fulk, count of Anjou ; and he had been ac- 
knowledged as successor to the kingdom of England, and 
the duchy of Normandy. The prince was detained for 
some hours after his father had set sail from Barfleur to 
return to England ; and his captain and crew having spent 
the interval in drinking, when they weighed anchor, in 
their impatience to overtake the king, they stnick the ship 
on a rock, where she immediately foundered. William 
was instantly put into the long-boat and had got clear of 
the ship ; when hearing the cries of his natural sister, the 
countess of Perche, he ordered the seamen to row back 
in hopes of saving her. But the numbers who then 
crowded in, soon sunk the boat ; and the prince, with all 
his retinue, perished. Above one hundred and forty young 
noblemen, of the principal families of England and Nor- 
mandy, were lost on this occasion ; and the only person 
that escaped to relate the melancholy tale was a butcher 
of Rouen, who clung to the mast, and was taken up the 
next morning by some fishermen. When Henry received 
intelligence of this mournful event, he fainted away ; aad 



STEPHEN. 45 

it was remarked that he never after recovered his wonted 
cheerfulness. 

Heniy had now no legitimate issue except one daugh- 
ter, Matilda, whom he had betrothed, when only eight 
years of age, to the emperor Henry the Fifth, and whom 
he had sent over to be educated in Germ an j'-. Fearful lest 
her absence from the kingdom, and marriage into a foreign 
family, might endanger the succession, Heniy obtained 
the hand of Adelais, daughter of Godfrey, duke of Lo- 
raine. Adelais, however, proved barren in his embraces ; 
and he bestowed his daughter Matilda, who had become a 
widow, on Geoffery, the son of Fulk, count of Anjou. 

Henry died at St. Dennis le Forment, from eating too 
plentifully of lampreys, in the sixty-seventh year of his 
age, and the thirty-fifth of his reign ; leaving by will his 
daughter Matilda the heir of all his dominions. He was 
one of the most accomplished princes that ever graced the 
English thurone. His person was manly, and his counte- 
nance engaging ; and he was eloquent, penetrating, and 
brave. By his great progress in literature, he acquired the 
name of Beau-clerc, or the scholar ; but his application to 
those sedentary pursuits abated nothing of the activity and 
vigilance of his government. 

The failure of male heirs to the kingdom of England 
and duchy of Normandy, seemed to leave the suc- 
1 135 ^^^^^^^^ open, without a rival, to the empress Ma- 
tilda ; but no sooner had Henry breathed his last, 
than Stephen, son of Adela, daughter of William the Con- 
queror, hastened to London, and was saluted king by the 
populace. His father was the count of Blois, whom Adela 
had married ; and Stephen had always affected the greatest 
attachment to his uncle, the late king, and the most ardent 
zeal for the succession of Matilda. After gaining the 
populace, Stephen next acquired the good-will of the 
clergy, by the influence of his brother Henry, bishop of 
Winchester ; and he was solemnly crowned by the arch- 
bishop of Canterbury, without much attendance indeed, 
but ^vithout opposition. 

The Normans no sooner heard that Stephen had seized 
the English crown, than they swore allegiance to him : 
and Matilda was scarcely informed of her father's death, 
before she found another had usurped her rights. Matilda, 
however, did not long delay to assert her claim to the 



46 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

crown. Encouraged by a quarrel which had broken out 
between Stephen and some of the clergy, slie landed in 
England, with Robert, eaii of Gloucester, and a retinue 
of one hundred and forty knights. She fixed her residence 
at Arundel castle, the gates of which were opened to her 
by Adelais, the queen-dowager ; and she excited her par- 
tisans to take arms in every county of England. The war 
quickly broke out in eveiy quarter; and England, for 
more than a year, was distressed and laid waste by the 
fury of the contending parties. At last, a battle took place 
between Stephen and the earl of Gloucester. After a vio- 
lent shock, the two wings of the royalists were put to 
flight ; and Stephen himself, surrounded by the enemy, 
was borne down by numbers, and taken prisoner. 

The authority of Matilda now seemed to be established 
over the wiiole kingdom ; but affairs did not remain long 
in this situation. Matilda was passionate and imperious, 
and did not know how to temper with affability the harsh- 
ness of a refusal. Stephen's queen, seconded by many of 
the nobility, petitioned for the liberty of her husband, on 
condition that he should renounce the crown, and retire 
into a convent. Other petitions also were presented to 
Matilda ; but she rejected them all in the most haughty 
and peremptoiy manner. A conspiracy was entered into 
to seize her person ; but Matilda saved herself by a precipi- 
tate retreat to Oxford. The civil w^ar was rekindled with 
greater fuiy than ever ; and Matilda, harassed with inces 
sant action, sought repose with her son in Normandy. 

But when prince Henry, the son of Matilda, had reach- 
ed his sixteenth year, he resolved to reclaim his hereditary 
kingdom. Informed of the dispositions of the English in 
his favour, he invaded England ; and, at Malmesbury, he 
prepared to encounter Stephen in a pitched battle. The 
great men on both sides, alarmed at the consequences of a 
decisive action, compelled the rival princes to a negotia- 
tion. It was agreed, that, on the demise of Stephen, the 
crov/n should revert to Heniy ; and that William, Ste- 
phen's sui*viving son, should succeed to the earldom of 
Boulogne, and his patrimonial estate. After all the barons 
had sworn to the observance of tliis treaty, and done ho- 
mage to Henry, as heir-apparent to the crown, that prince 
evacuated the kingdom ; and the death of Stephen, which 



HENRY II. 47 

1 



happened the next year, after a short illness, in the fiftieth 
year of his age, put an end to farther jealousies. 

Had Stephen succeeded by a just title to the crown, he 
seems to have been well qualified to have promoted the 
happiness of his subjects. He was possessed of industry, 
activity, and courage ; and though his judgment may be 
arraigned, his humanity must be acknowledged, and his 
atldress commended. During this reign, the see of Rome 
made a rapid progress in its encroachments, and ulti- 
mately pretended to a paramount authority over the kings 
of this country. 



CHAP. IV. 

Heigns of Henri/ II., Richard /., and John. 

The first acts of Henry's government corresponded to 
the high idea entertained of his abilities. He dis- 
, I ^1 missed the mercenary soldiers of Stephen ; revok- 
ed all grants made by his predecessors ; restored 
the coin which had been debased during the former reign ; 
and was rigorous in the execution of justice, and the sup- 
pression of violence. 

In addition to his possessing the throne of England, 
Henry, in right of his father, was master of Anjou and 
Touraine ; in that of his mother, of Normandy and Maine ; 
in that of his wife, of Guienne, Poictou, Xantiogne, Au- 
vergne, Perigord, Angoumois, and the Liinosin ; and he 
annexed Brittany to his other states ; all of which ren- 
dered him one of the most powerful monarchs in Christen- 
dom, and an object of great jealousy to the king of France. 

Henry directed his attention to the encroachments of 
tbv9 see of Rome, which had grown with a rapidity not to 
be brooked by a prince of his high spirit. To facilitate 
his design of suppressing them, he advanced to the dignity 
of m^etropolitan, Becket, his chancellor, on whose flexibi- 
lity of temper he had made a wrong estimate. 

Thomas a Becket was born of reputable parents in the 
city of London ; and having insinuated himself into the 
favour oif Theobald, archbishop of Canterbury, he obtained 
from that prelate considerable preferment. Being of a 
gay and splendid turn, and apparently little tenacious of 
ecclesiastical privileges, Henry thought him the fittest per- 
son, on the death of Theobald, for the high station of me 



48 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

tropolitan ; but no sooner was he installed on this high 
dignity, than he altered his conduct and demeanor. He 
maiutained in his retinue and attendants alone his ancient 
pomp and lustre ; in his own person he affected the greatest 
austerity ; he wore sackcloth next his skin, which he pre- 
tended to conceal ; he seemed perpetually employed in re- 
citing prayers and pious lectures ; and all men of penetra- 
tion plainly saw that he was meditating some great design. 

Though Henry found himself grievously mistaken in the 
character of the person whom he had raised to the pri- 
macy, yet he determined not to desist from his former in- 
tention of retrenching clerical usurpations. The ecclesi- 
astics in that age had renounced all immediate subordina- 
tion to the magistrate ; and crimes of the blackest die were 
committed by them with impunity. A clerk in Worces- 
tershire, having debauched a gentleman's daughter, had 
proceeded to murder the father ; the general indignation 
against the crime, moved the king to attempt the remedy ol 
an abuse which had become so palpable, and to require that 
the clerk should be dehvered up, and receive condign pun- 
ishment from the magistrate. Becket insisted on the privi- 
leges of the church, and maintained that no greater punish- 
ment could be inflicted on the criminal than degradation. 

In order to define expressly those laws to which he re- 
quired obedience, and to marlv the limits between the civil 
and ecclesiastical jurisdictions, Henry summoned a gene- 
ral council of the nobility and prelates at Clarendon ; v/hen, 
by his influence or authority, the laws so favourable to pre- 
rogative, known by the name of the Constitutions of Cla- 
rendon, were voted without opposition. Becket, of all the 
prelates, alone withheld his assent ; but he was at last 
obliged to comply, and engaged by oath legally, with good 
faith, and without fraud or reserve, to observe them. 
However, Alexander, who was po^e at that time, con- 
demned them in the strongest terms, abrogated, annulled, 
and rejected them. 

Becket no sooner learned the determination of the Ro 
man pontiflT, than he expressed the deepest sorrow for his 
compliance, and endeavoured to engage the other bishops 
to adhere to their common rights. This excited the resent- 
ment of Henry, who caused a prosecution for some land 
that he held to be commenced against him ; and when the 
primate excused himself from appearing, on account of 



HENRV U. 49 

hi«disposition, he was arraigned as guilty of a contempt of 
the king's court ; and being condemned, his goods and 
chattels were confiscated. Henry soon after required 
Becket to give in the account of his administration while 
chancellor, and estimated the balance due at 44,000 
marks, for which he demanded sureties. After celebra- 
ting mass, where he had previously ordered that the introit 
to the communion service should begin with the words, 
Princes sat and spake against me, arrayed in the sacred 
vestments, and bearing the cross aloft in his hands, he 
entered the royal apartments, and declared that he put 
himself and his see under the protection of the supreme 
pontiff. Having in vain asked permission to leave North- 
ampton, \e withdrew s-ecretly to the sea-coast, and found 
a vessel which conveyed him to France, where he was 
received with every token of regard. 

Henry issued orders to his justiciaries, inhibitijig, under 
severe penalties, all appeals to the pope or archbishop ; 
and by discovering some intentions of acknowledging 
Pascal III., the anti-pope at that time, he endeavoured to 
terrify the enterprising though prudent pontiff from pro- 
ceeding to extremities against him. On the other hand, 
Becket not only issued a censure, excommunicating the 
king's chief ministers by name, but also abrogated and 
annulled the constitutions of Clarendon ; and he declared 
that he suspended the spiritual thunder over Henry him- 
self, solely that the prince might avoid the blow by a 
timely repentance. 

At length a reconciliation was effected between the king 
and the primate ; and Becket was allowed to return, on 
conditions v»^hich may be esteemed both honourable and 
advantageous to that prelate. He was not required to 
give up any rights of the church, or resign any of those 
pretensions which had been the original ground of the 
controversy. It was agreed that all thv.se questions should 
be buried in oblivion ; but that Becket and his adherents 
should, without making further submission, be restored to 
all their livings ; and that even the possessors of such be- 
nefices as depended on the see of Canterbury, and had 
been filled during the primate's absence, should be expel- 
led, and Becket have liberty to supply the vacancies. In 
return for concessions which trenched so deeply on tlie 
honour and dignity of the crown, Henry reaped only the 
5 



50 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

advantage of seeing his ministers absolved from tl>e sen* 
tence of excommunication pronounced against them^ and 
of preventing the interdict with which his kingdom had 
been threatened. So anxious was Henry to accommo- 
date all differences, and to reconcile himse-lf fully with 
Becket, that on one occasion he humiliated himself so 
far as to hold the stirrup of that haughty prelate while he 
mounted his horse. 

Whilst the king was expecting an interdict to be laid on 
his kingdom, he had associated his son, prince Henry, m 
the royalty, and had caused him to be crowned by the 
archbishop of York. Becket, elated by the victory which 
he had gained over his sovereign, on his arrival in Eng- 
land suspended the archbishop of York, and excommuni- 
cated the bishops of London and Salisbury, who had as- 
sisted at the coronation of the prince. 

When the suspended and excommunicated prelates ar- 
rived at Baieux, where the king then resided, and inform- 
ed him of the violent proceedings of Becket, he was vehe- 
mently agitated, and burst forth in an exclamation againsi 
his seiTants, whose want of zeal, he said, had so long left 
him exposed to the enterprises of that ungrateful and im- 
perious prelate. Four gentlemen of his household, Regi- 
nald Fitz-TJrse, William de Traci, Hugh de Moreville, 
and Richard Brito, taking these passionate expressions to 
be a hint for the primate's death, immediately communi- 
cated their thoughts to each other ; and swearing to avenge 
their prince's quarrel, secretly withdrew from court. The 
four assassins, though they took different roads to Eng- 
land, arrived nearly at the same time at Saltwood, near 
Canterbury ; and being there joined by some assistants, 
they proceeded in great haste to tlie archiepiscopal palace. 
They found the primate, who trusted entirely to the sa- 
credness of his character, very slenderly attended ; and 
though they threw out many menaces and reproaches 
against him, he was so incapable of fear, that, without 
using any precautions against their violence, he immedi- 
ately proceeded to St. Benedict's church to hear vespers. 
They followed him thither, attacked him before the altar, 
and having cloven his head with many blows, retired with- 
out experiencing any opposition. Such was the tragical 
end of Thomas a Becket, a prelate of the most lofty, in- 
trepid, and inflexible spirit, who was able to cover to the 



HENRY II. 51 

world, and probably to himself, the ente-rprises of pride 
and ambition, under the disguise of sanctity, and of zeal 
for the interests of*religion. 

The intelligence of Becket's murder threw the king into 
the greatest consternation ; and he was immediately sen- 
sible of the dangerous consequences which he had to ap- 
prehend from so horrible an event. However, the rage of 
Alexander was appeased, by the ministers of Henry ma- 
king oath before the whole consistory of their sovereign's 
innocence, and engaging that he would make every sub- 
mission which should be required of him. Becket was 
afterwards canonized by the pope ; and pilgrimages were 
performed to obtain his intercession with heaven. 

Heniy, finding himself in no immediate danger from 
the thunders of the Vatican, undertook an expedi- 
, i ^^ tion against Ireland. That island, about the mid- 
dle of the twelfth century, besides many small 
tribes, contained five principal sovereignties, Munster, 
Leinster, Meath, Ulster, and Connaught ; and, as it had 
been usual for one or the other of these to take the lead in 
their wars, there was commonly some prince, who seemed, 
for the time, to act as monarch of Ireland. Roderic 
O'Connor, king of Connaught, was then advanced to this 
dignity ; but his government, ill obeyed even within his 
own territoiy, could not unite the people in any measures 
either for the establishment of order, or for defence against 
foreigners. 

Dermot Macmorrogh, king of Leinster, having rendered 
himself obnoxious by his licentious tyranny, had been ex- 
pelled his dominions by a confederacy, of which Con- 
naught was the chief. The exiled prince applied to Henry 
for succour, who gave Dermot no other assistance than 
letters patent, by which he empowered all his subjects to 
aid him in the recovery of his dominions. Dermot formed 
a treaty with Richard, surnamed Strongbow, earl of Stri- 
gal ; who stipulated, for this assistance, a promise that he 
should marry his daughter Eva, and be declared heir to 
all his territories. Dermot also engaged in his service 
Robert Fitz-Stephens, constable of Abertivi, and Maurice 
Fitz-Gerald, and obtained their promise of invading Ire- 
land ; he himself privately returned to his own state, con- 
cealed himself in a monastery which he had founded, and 
prepared every thing for the reception of his English aUies. 



S2 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

The troops of Fitz-Stephens were first ready. That 
gentleman landed in Ireland with thirty knights, sixty es- 
quires, and three hundred archers. The conjunction of 
Maurice de Pendergast, who about the same time brought 
over ten knights and sixty archers, enabled Fitz-Stephens 
to attempt the siege of Wexford, a town inhabited by the 
Danes ; and after gaining an advantage, he made himself 
master of the place. Soon after, Fitz-Gerald arrived with 
ten knights, thirty esquires, and a hundred archers ; and 
being joined by the former adventurers, composed a force 
which nothing in Ireland was able to withstand. Roderic, 
the chief monarch of the island, was foiled in different ac- 
tions ; the prince of Ossoiy was obliged to submit, and 
give hostages for his peaceable behaviour; and Demiot, 
not content with being restored to his kingdom of Leinster, 
projected the dethroning of Roderic, and aspired to the 
sole dominion of Ireland. 

In prosecution of these views, he sent over a messenger 
to the earl of Strigul, challenging the performance of his 
promise, and displaying the mighty advantages which 
might now be reaped by a reinforcement of warlike troops 
from England. Strongbow first sent over Raymond, one 
of his retinue, with ten knights, and seventy archers ; and 
as Richard himself, who brought over two hundred horse 
and a body of archers, joined them a few days after, the 
English made themselves masters of Waterford, and pro- 
ceeded to Dublin, which was taken by assault. Richard, 
marrying Eya, became soon after, by the death of Dermot, 
master of the kingdom of Leinster, and prepared to ex- 
tend his authority over all Ireland. 

Henry, jealous of the progress of his own subjects, sent 
orders to recall all the EngUsh ; and that monarch him- 
self landed in Ireland at the head of five hundred knights. 
The adventurers appeased him by offering to hold all their 
acquisitions in vassalage to his crown ; and the Irish, being 
dispiri-ted by their misfortunes, nothing more was neces- 
sary than to receive their submission. The whole island 
was formally annexed to the English crown ; and Henry, 
after granting to earl Strigul the commission of seneschal 
of Ireland, returned in triumph to England. 

The king had appointed Hemy, his eldest son, to be his 
successor in the kingdom of England, the duchy of Nor- 
mandy, and the counties of Anjou, Maine, and Tourainej 




Edwy and Elgiva. 




BeckeVs Death. 



HENKY It. 



5^ 



Richard, liis second son, was invested in the duchy of 
Guienne and county of Poictou ; GeofFeiy, his third son, 
inherited, in right of his wife, the duchy of Brittany ; and 
the new conquest of Ireland was destined for the appa- 
nage of John, his fourth son. But this exahation of his 
family excited the jealousy of all his neighbours, who made 
those very sons, whose fortunes he had so anxiously esta- 
blished, the means of embittering his future life, and dis- 
turbing his government. 

Young Henry had been persuaded by Lewis of France, 
that by the ceremony of coronation, in the life of his 
father, he was entitled to sovereignty. In consequence of 
these extravagant ideas, he desired the king to resign to 
him either the crown of England, or the duchy of Nor- 
mandy ; and on the king refusing to grant his request, he 
fled to Paris. Whilst Henry was alarmed at this incident, 
his uneasiness was increased by the conduct of his queen, 
Eleanor, who was not less troublesome to her present 
husband by her jealousy, in regard to fair Rosamond and 
others, than she had been to her former by her gallantries. 
She communicated her discontents to her two younger 
sons, Geoffery and Richard; persuaded them that they 
were also entitled to the present possession of the territo- 
ries which had been assigned them, and induced them to 
flee secretly to the court of France. Thus Europe saw 
with astonishment three boys, scarcely arrived at puberty, 
pretend to dethrone their father, a monarch in the full 
vigour of his age, and plenitude of his power. 

The king of England was obliged to seek for auxiliaries 
in the tribes of banditti, who, under the name of Braban- 
90ns, or Cottereaux, proffered their swords to the most 
liberal employer. At the head of twenty thousand of these 
hardy and lawless ruffians, and the few troops that he had 
brought from Ireland, he attacked and defeated the French 
army, and crushed the insurgents in Brittany. He con- 
tinued his negotiations in the midst of victory, and offered 
to his undutiful sons the most liberal terms; but these 
were rejected by the confederates, who depended on the 
league they had concerted with the king of Scotland, and 
several of the most powerful barons of England. 

In consequence of that league, the king of S-cotland 
brolce into the northern provinces with a great army of 
eighty thousand men ; and Henry, who had baffled all his 
5* 



54 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

enemies in France, and had put his frontiers in a posture 
of defence, now found England the seat of danger. He 
landed at Southampton ; and knowing the influence of 
superstition over the minds of the people, he hastened to 
Canterbury, in order to make atonement to the canonized 
ashes of Thomas a Becket. As soon as he came within 
sight of the church of Canterbury, he dismounted, walked 
barefoot towards it, prostrated himself before the shrine 
of the saint, remained in fasting and prayer during a 
whole day, and watched all night the holy relicks. He 
also assembled a chapter of the monks, disrobed himself 
before them, put a scourge of discipline into the hands of 
each, and presented his bare shoulders to the lashes which 
these ecclesiastics inflicted upon him. Next day he re- 
ceived absolution ; and departing for London, soon after 
received the agreeable intelligence of a great victory 
which his generals had obtained over the Scots, in which 
William their king was taken prisoner, and which being 
gained, as was reported, on the very day of his absolution, 
was regarded as the earnest of his final reconciliation with 
Heaven and with Thomas h Becket. 

This victory was decisive in favour of Henry, and en- 
tirely broke the spirit of the English rebels. In a few 
weeks all England was restored to tranquility. Lewis, 
the king of France, was obliged to consent to a cessation 
of arms, and engaged with sincerity in a treaty of peace ; 
and Henry, after granting to his sons much less favourable 
terms than he had formerly offered, received their submis- 
sions. It cost the king of Scots the ancient independency 
of his crown, as the price of his liberty. William stipu- 
lated to do homage to Henry for Scotland and all his other 
possessions ; and the English monarch engaged the king 
and states of Scotland to make a perpetual cession of the 
fortresses of Berwick and Roxbury, and to allow the cas- 
tle of Edinburgh to remain in his hands for a limited time. 
This was the fii'st great ascendant which England had 
over Scotland ; and indeed the first important transaction 
between the kingdoms. 

A few years after, Henry found his eldest son again en- 
gaged in conspiracies, and ready to'take arms against him. 
But while the young prince was conducting these intrigues, 
he was seized with a fever at Martel, a castle near Tu- 



RICHARD I. 55 

renne, where he died full of remorse for his undutiful be- 
haviour to his father. 

A crusade had been once more projected ; but Philip, 
who tilled the throne of France, and was jealous of Hen- 
ry's power, entered into a private confederacy with young 
Richard. Philip demanded that Richard should be crown- 
ed king of England, be immediately invested with all his 
father's transmarine dominions, and espouse Alice, Philip's 
sister, to whom he had been already affianced. Henry 
refused to accede to these stipulations ; but experiencing 
a reverse of fortune, he was at length obliged to submit 
to the rigorous terms which, vmder the mediation of the 
duke of Burgundy, were offered to him. 

The mortification, however, which Henry endured on 
this occasion, was increased by discovering that his fourth 
son, John, who had ever been his favourite, had secretly 
entered into the unnatural confederacy which Richard had 
formed against him. The unhappy father, already over- 
loaded with cares and sorrows, finding this last disappoint- 
ment in his domestic tenderness, broke out into expres- 
sions of the utmost despair, cursed the day on which he 
received his miserable being, and bestovt^ed on his ungrate- 
ful and undutiful children a malediction which he could 
never be prevailed on to retract. The agitation of his 
mind threw him into a lingering fever, of which he ex- 
pired at the castle of Chinon, near Saumur, in the fifty- 
eighth year of his age, and the thirty-fifth of his reign ; 
and he was buried at Fontervrault. 

Henry was the greatest prince of his time for wisdom 
and abilities, and the most powerful, in extent of domi- 
nion, of all that had filled the throne of England. His 
character, in private as well as in public life, is almost 
without a blemish; and he seems to have possessed every 
accomplishment, both of body and mind, which renders a 
man either estimable or amiable. He loved peace, but 
possessed both bravery and abilities in war ; he was pro- 
vident without timidity ; severe in the execution of justice 
without rigour ; and temperate without austerity. 

The remorse of Richard for his undutiful behaviour 
towards his father, influenced him in the choice of 
his' servants after his succession. Those who had t' ^' 
''•""'^"red his rebellion were on all occasions treated 

iisregard and contempt, whilst the faithful ministers 



56 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

of Henry, who had opposed the enterprises of his sonSj 
were continued in those offices which they had honoura- 
hly discharged to their former master. 

The love of mihtary glory impelled the king to act, from 
the beginning of his reign, as if the sole purpose of his 
government had been the relief of the Holy Land, and 
the recovery of Jerusalem from the Saracens. This zeal 
against infidels, being communicated to his subjects, broke 
out in London on the day of his coronation ; when some 
Jews, who had presumed, contrary to the orders of the 
king, to approach the hall in which he dined, were dragged 
forth, and put to death, and vengeance fell on their inno- 
cent brethren. Listantly, their houses were broken open, 
their effects plundered, and themselves slaughtered. The 
inhabitants of other cities followed the example of the peo- 
ple of London ; and in York, five hundred .lews, who had 
retired into the castle, finding themselves unable to defend 
it, murdered their own wives and children, and, setting fire 
to the house, perished in the flames. 

Richard, regardless of every other consideration than 
the expedition to the Holy Land, endeavoured to obtain 
supplies for the exigencies of so perilous a war, by every 
expedient which he could devise. He put to sale the reve- 
nues and manors of the crown, and the offices of greatest 
tiTJSt and power. He yielded up for ten thousand marks 
the vassalage of Scotland, with the fortresses of Roxbo- 
rough and Berwick. He even declared, that he would 
sell London itself, could he find a purchaser. He left the 
administration in the hands of Hugh, bishop of Durham, 
and of Longchamp, bishop of Ely; and, accompanied by 
all the military and fiery spirits of the kingdom, set out 
for the frontiers of Burgundy, where he had engaged to 
meet the French king. 

In the plains of Vezelay, Richard and Phihp reviewed 
their forces, and found their combined army amount to 
one hundred thousand men; and after repeating their 
vows of friendship to each other, they separated, Richard 
embarking at Marseilles, and Philip at Genoa. They 
reached Messina about the same time, and passed the 
winter in Sicily, where several quarrels broke out between 
the troops of the diflferent nations ; and these were com- 
municated to the two kings, who, however, waiving imme 
diate jealousies, proceeded to the Holy Land. 



R1C1IAU1> 1 



The English army arrived in time to partake in th«j 
siege of Acre or Ptolemais, which had been attacked for 
more than two years by the united force of all the clins- 
tians in Palestine. The siege of Acre was pressed with 
redoubled ardour ; but the harmony of the chiefs was of 
short duration. The opposite views of Richard and Philip 
produced faction ana dissention in the christian army, and 
retarded all its operations. But as the length of the siege 
had reduced the Saracen garrison to the last extremity, 
they surrendered themselves prisoners ; and the gates of 
Acre were opened to the conquerors. 

On the surrender of this place, Philip, disgusted with 
the ascendancy acquired by Richard, declared his resolu- 
tion of returning to France, under the plea of a bad state 
of health. He left, however, to the king of England, ten 
thousand of his troops, under the command of the duke of 
Bui'gundy, and engaged by oath not to commence hostili- 
ties against that prince's dominions during his absence ; 
but he no sooner reached home, than he proceeded, though 
secretly, in a project which the present situation of Eng-* 
land rendered inviting. 

Immediately after Richard had left England, the two 
prelates, whom he had appointed guardians of the realm, 
broke out into animosities against each other, and threw 
the kingdom into confusion. Longchamp, naturally pre- 
sumptuous, and armed with the legatine commission, hesi- 
tated not to arrest his colleague, the bishop of Durham, 
and governed the kingdom by his sole authority. At 
length, he had the temerity to throw into prison Geoffrey, 
archbishop of York. This breach of ecclesiastical privi- 
leges excited such an universal ferment, that prince John 
summoned the guardian before a council of the nobility 
and prelates. Longchamp, conscious of his error, fled 
beyond sea, and was deprived of his offices of chancellor 
and chief justiciary , but his commission of legate still 
enabled him to disturb the government. Philip not only 
promoted his intrigues, but entered into a corres- 
pondence with John, to whom he promised his sis- ^' ij^ 
ter Alice in marriage, and the possession of all 
Richard's transmarine dominions. John was with diffi- 
culty deterred from this enterprise by the vigilance of his 
mother, and the menaces of the council. 

The jealousy of Philip was excited by the glory which 



58 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

the actions of Richard gained him in the east. The king 
of England obtained a complete victory over the Saracens, 
of whom forty thousand are said to have perished in the 
field of battle ; he recovered Ascalon, and advanced within 
sight of Jerusalem, the object of his enterprise ; but long 
absence, fatigue, disease, and want, had abated the ardour 
of the crusaders. Every one, except the king of England, 
expressed a desire of returning into Europe. Richard 
was forced to yield to their importunities ; and he con- 
cluded a truce with Saladin, by which the christians were 
left in possession of Acre, Joppa, and other sea-port towns 
of Palestine, and were allowed a free pilgrimage to Jeru- 
salem. 

As Richard was acquainted with the intrigues of Philip, 
he ventured not to pass through France on his return, but 
sailed to the Adriatic ; and being shipwrecked near Aqui- 
leia, he put on the disguise of a pilgrim, and endeavoured 
to pursue his route through Germany. At Vienna he was 
arrested by orders of Leopold, duke of Austria, and by him 
he was sold to the emperor Henry VI., who affected to 
consider him as an enemy, on account of an alliance which 
he had contracted with Tancred, king of Sicily. Thus 
Richard, who had filled the world with his renown, was 
confined in a dungeon, and loaded with irons. 

The king of France prepared to avail himself of his 
misfortunes. Philip entered into negotiations with 
tioQ prince John, who stipulated to deliver to the king 
of France a great part of Normandy, and received, 
in return, the investiture of all Richard's transmarine do- 
minions. In consequence of this treaty, Philip invaded 
Normandy, and by the treachery of John's adherents over- 
ran a great part of it ; but he was repulsed from the walls 
of Rouen, by the gallantry of the earl of Leicester. Prince 
John was not more successful in his attempt in England : 
though he made himself master of the castles of Windsoi' 
and Wallingford, yet finding the barons every where averse 
to his cause, he was obliged to retire again to France. 

In the mean time, Richard, in Germany, suffered every 
kind of insult and indignity ; he was accused by Henry, 
before the diet of the empire, of making an alliance with 
Tancred, the usurper of Sicily ; of afi*ronting the duke ol 
Austria before Acre ; of obstructing the progress of the 
christian arms by his quarrels with the king of France ; 



mCHARD I» 59 

and of concluding a truce with Saladin, and leaving Jeru- 
salem in the hands of the Saracen emperor. Richard, 
after deigning to apologise for his conduct, burst out into 
indignation at the cruel treatment which he had met with ; 
and the emperor, finding it impracticable to detain the 
king of England longer in captivity, agreed to restore him 
to his freedom for the sum of one hundred and fifty thou- 
sand marks, or about three hundred thousand pounds of 
our present money. 

The joy of the English was extreme on the appearance 
of their monarch, who was crowned anew at Winchester, 
as if to wipe off" the ignominy of captivity. As soon as 
Philip heard of the king's deliverance, he wrote to his 
confederate John in these terms : " take care of yourself — 
the devil is broken loose." John, however, anxious to 
disengage himself from an associate whose fortunes seem- 
ed declining, threw himself at his brother's feet, and im- 
plored his mercy. "I forgive you," said the king, " and 
hope I shall as easily forget your injuries, as you will my 
pardon." 

The Idng of France was the great object of Richard's 
resentment and animosity ; and during five years after the 
king's return, the two sovereigns were engaged in a series 
of faithless negotiations and desultory warfare. The car- 
dinal of St. Mary, the pope's legate, was employed in 
changing a truce into a durable peace, when the death of 
Richard put an end to the negotiation. 

Vidomer, viscount of Limoges, having found a treasui'e, 
it wa's claimed by Richard, as his superior lord ; and that 
nobleman was besieged by the king in the castle of Cha- 
lons. As Richard approached to survey the works, one 
Bertrand de Gourdon, an archer, pierced his shoulder with 
an arrow. The wound was not dangerous ; but the un- 
skilfulness of the surgeon rendered it mortal. The king, 
sensible that his end was approaching, sent for Gourdon, 
and said, " wretch, what have I ever done to you, to in- 
duce you to seek my hfe ?" The prisoner coolly replied, 
" you killed with your own hands my father and my two 
brothers : I am now in your power, and you may take 
revenge, by inflicting on me the most severe torments ; 
but I shall endure them with pleasure, provided I ca-.i 
think that I have been so happy as to rid the world from 
such a nuisance." The miiid of Richard was softened by 



CO HISTORY OF ENGLAND* 

tlie near approach of death, and the magnanimity of Gour- 
don ; he ordered him to be set at Hberty, and a simi of 
money to be given him ; but Marcadee, one of Richard's 
generals, privately seized the unhappy man, flayed him 
alive, and then hanged him. 

Thus died Richard, in the tenth year of his reign, and 
the forty-second of his age. The most shining parts of 
his character are his military talents, and his personal 
courage, which gained him the appellation of " Cojur de 
Lion," or " the Lion-hearted." He was, however, a pas- 
sionate lover of poetry ; and some poetical works of his 
composition are still extant. He left behind him no issue ; 
and by his last will, he declared his brother John heir to 
all his dominions, though by a formal deed before he em- 
barked for the Holy Land, he had named as his successor, 
his nephew Arthur, duke of Brittany, the son of Geoffrey, 
elder brother of John, who was now only twelve years of age. 
The barons of the transmarine provinces, Anjou, Maine, 

and Touraine, declared in favour of Arthur, and 
IIQQ ^Ppli^d for assistance to the French monarch. 

Philip, who desired only an occasion to embarrass 
John, and to dismember his dominions, embraced the 
cause of the young duke of Brittany. John, after being 
acknowledged in Normandy and England, returned to 
France, in order to conduct the war against Philip. No- 
thing enabled the king to bring matters to a happy issue 
so much as the selfish and intriguing character of the 
French monarch. Constantia, the mother of Arthur, was 
jealous that Philip intended to usurp the entire dominion 
of the provinces which had declared for her son. She, 
therefore, secretly carried off her son from Paris, put him 
into the hands of his uncle, restored the provinces which 
had adhered to him, and made him do homage for the 
duchy of Brittany, which was regarded as a fief of Nor- 
mandy. As Philip, after this incident, saw that he could 
not car.ry on the war with success, he entered into a treaty 
with John, in which the limits of their territories were ad- 
justed ; and, to render their union more permanent, the 
king of England gave his niece, Blanche of Castile, in 
marriage to prince Louis, Philip's eldest son, and with 
her the baronies of Issoudua and Gracai, and other fiefs 
in Berri. 

Thus secure, as lie imagined, on the side of France, 



JOHN. 61 

John indulged his passion for Isabella, the daughter 
of the count of Angouleme, a lady with whom he joa/. 
had become much enamoured. Though his queen, "^ 
the heiress of the family of Gloucester, was still alive, and 
Isabella was betrothed to the count of Marche, the passion 
of the king overcame every obstacle ; he persuaded the 
count of AngouJeme to carry off his daughter from her 
husband ; and having procured a divorce from his wife, 
he espoused Isabella, regardless of the menaces of the 
people, and of the resentment of the injured count. 

John had not the art of attaching his barons either by 
affection or by fear. The count of Marche taking 
advantage of the general discontent against him, i^ai 
excited commotions in Poictou and Normandy, 
and obliged the king to have recourse to arms in order to 
suppress the insurrection of his vassals. He summoned 
together the barons of England, and required them to pass 
the sea under his standard, and to quell the rebels ; but 
he found that he possessed as little authority in that king- 
dom as in his transmarine provinces. The English ba- 
rons unanimously replied, that they would not attend him 
on this expedition, unless he would promise to restore and 
preserve their privileges ; but John, by menaces, engaged 
many of them to follow him into Normandy, and obliged 
the rest to pay the price of their exemption from service. 
The force which the king carried with him, and that 
which joined him in Normandy, rendered him greatly su- 
perior to the malcontents ; but, elated with his superiority, 
he advanced claims which gave an universal alarm to his 
vassals, and diffused still wider the general discontent. 
The king of France, to whom the complainants appealed 
for redress, interposed in behalf of the French barons. 

Whilst matters were thus circumstanced, the duke of 
Brittany, who was rising to man's estate, joined the king 
of France and the revolted nobles. Impatient of military 
renown, the young prince had entered Poictou with a small 
army, and had invested Mirabeau, in which was his grand- 
mother, queen Eleanor, when John attacked his camp, dis- 
persed his army, and took him prisoner. The king repre- 
sented to Arthur the folly of his pretensions, and required 
him to renounce the French alliance ; but the brave, though 
imprudent youth, maintained the justice of his cause, and 
asserted his claim not only to the French provinces, but to 
6 



02 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

the crown of England. John, sensible, from these symp- 
toms of spirit, that the youn^ prince might hereafter prove 
a dangerous rival, ordered him to be despatched ; but when 
he found that his commands had not been obeyed, the cruel 
tyrant stabbed him with his own hands, and fastening a 
stone to the dead body, t^^rew it into the Seine. 

All men were struck with horror at this inhuman deed ; 
and from that moment the king, who was now detested by 
his subjects, retained a very precarious authority over both 
the people and the barons in his dominions. As John 
had got into his power his niece Eleanor, sister to Arthur, 
the Bretons chose for their sovereign Alice, a younger 
daughter of Constantia, by a second marriage. They also 
solicited the assistance of Philip, who received their appli- 
cation with pleasure, summoned John to a trial, and on 
his non-appearance, declared him to have forfeited to his 
superior lord all his fiefs in France. 

The king of France perceived the opportunity favoura- 
ble for expelling the English, or rather the English king, 
and of re-annexing to the French crown so many conside- 
rable appendages, of which, during several ages, it had 
been dismembered. Philip extended his conquests along 
the banks of the Loire, v/hile John consumed his liours at 
Rouen in pastimes and amusements. " Let the French 
go on," said he, " I will retake in a day what it has cost 
them years to acquire." Yet, instead of fulfilling this 
vaunt, he meanly applied to the pope. Innocent III., who 
ordered Philip to stop the progress of his arms, and to 
conclude a peace with the king of England. Philip, 
however, instead of obeying the orders of the pope, laid 
siege to Chateau Gaillard, the most considerable fortress 
on the frontiers of Normandy, which was taken by a sud- 
den assault in the night. When the bulwark of Nor- 
mandy was once subdued, the whole province was open 
to the inroads of Philip. The French king proceeded to 
invest Ilouen, the inhabitants of which demanded thirty 
days to advertise their prince of their danger. Upon the 
expiration of that term they opened their gates ; and 
Philip, leading his victorious army into the western pro- 
vinces, soon reduced Anjou, Maine, Touraine, and part 
of Poictou. John made a feeble attempt to recover his 
transmarine dominions, by landing a considerable army 
at Kochelle ; but the approach of Philip threw him into a 



JOHN. (Ki 

panic, and he deserted his troops, and returned to England 
with shame and disgrace. The mediation of the pope 
procured him a trace for two years with the French 
monarch ; but almost all the transmarine provinces were 
wrested from him ; and the church, which, at that time, 
declined not a contest with the most powerful monarchs, 
took advantage of John's imbecility. 

Innocent the Third, a prelate of a lofty and enterpri- 
sing genius, attempted to convert the superiority 
yielded him by all the European princes into a real icjny 
dominion over them. A dispute respecting an 
election to the see of Canterbury, aiForded Innocent an 
opportunity of claiming a right to nominate the primate 
of England. Availing himself of this opportunity, he 
commanded the monks or canons of Christ -church, who 
had hitherto possessed that important privilege, to choose, 
on pain of excommunication, cardinal Langton, an Eng- 
lishman by birth, but connected by interest and attach- 
ment to the see of Rome. In vain the monks represented, 
that an election, without a previous writ from the king, 
would be highly irregular; and that they were merely 
agents for another person, whose right they could not 
abandon. One only persevered in this opposition ; the 
rest, overcome by the menaces and authority of the pope, 
complied with his mandate. 

John was inflamed with the utmost rage when he heard 
of this interference of the court of Rome ; and he imme- 
diately vented his passion on the monks of Christ-church, 
whom he expelled the monastery. When it was intimated 
to him that if he persevered in his disobedience, the sove- 
reign pontiff would be obliged to lay the kingdom under 
an interdict, the king burst out into violent invectives, and 
swore if the pope attempted such a measure, that he would 
send to him all the bishops and clergy in England, and 
confiscate all their estates. These sallies of passion, how- 
ever, were disregarded by the Roman pontiff, Avho, sensi- 
ble that John had lost the confidence of the people, at 
(ength fulminated the sentence of interdict. 

The execution of this sentence was calculated to strike 
with awe the minds of a superstitious people. The nation 
was of a sudden deprived of all exterior exercise of its re- 
ligion; the altars were despoiled of their ornaments ; the 
dead were not interred in consecrated ground, but were 



64 IliSTORi' OF ENGLAND. 

thrown into ditches, or buried in common fields ; marriage 
was solemnized in the church-yards ; and every circum- 
stance carried symptoms of the most immediate appre- 
hension of divine vengeance. 

The king, that he might oppose his temporal to their 
spiritual terrors, confiscated the estates of all the clergy 
who obeyed the interdict ; and treated with the utmost 
rigour the adherents of the church of Rome. Though 
some of the clergy, from the dread of punishment, obeyed 
the orders of John, and celebrated divine service, yet tliey 
complied with the utmost reluctance, and were regarded, 
both by themselves and the people, as men who betrayed 
their principles, and sacrificed their conscience to their 
fears or their interests. 

As the interdict had not reduced the king to obedience, 
and the people had not risen in rebellion, the court 
1*2(tQ ^^ Ronie determined to proceed to excommunica- 
tion. John was now alarmed at his dangerous 
situation. In a conference at Dover, he ofiered to ac- 
knowledge Langton as primate, to submit to the pope, and 
to restore the exiled clergy ; but Langton demanding the 
full reparation for the rents of their confiscated estates, 
the king broke oft' the conference. Innocent immediately 
absolved John's subjects from their oaths of fidelity and 
allegiance ; declared every one excommunicated who held 
any intercourse with him ; deposed him from his throne ; 
and off'ered the crown of England to the king of France. 

Philip was seduced by interest to accept this offer of the 
pontiff". He levied a great army, and collected in the ports 
of Normandy and Picardy a fleet of one thousand seven 
hundred vessels. To oppose him, John assembled at 
Dover an army of sixty thousand men ; a force sufficient, 
had they been animated with zeal ; but the minds of the 
common people were impressed with superstition ; the 
barons were all disgusted with the tyranny of the king ; 
and the incapacity and cowardice of John augmented his 
difficulties. The obstinacy of the humbled monarch at 
length gave way, when Pandolf, the pope's legate, repre- 
sented to him the certainty of his ruin, from the disaffec- 
tion of his subjects, and the mighty armament of France. 
John now agreed to all the conditions Avhich Prtndolf was 
pleased to impose. He passed a charter, in which he de- 
clared he had, for the remission of his own sins, and those 




JoKtCs svhmission to the Pope 




Death of Prince Arthur 



JOHN. 6!> 

of his family, resigned England and Ireland to God, to 
St. Peter and St. Paul, and to pope Innocent and his suc- 
cessors in the apostolic chair ; agreeing to hold those domi- 
nions as feudatories of the church of Rome, by the annual 
payment of a thousand marks. He did homage to Pan- 
dolf in the most abject manner : he fell on his knees oe- 
fore the legate, who was seated on the throne ; swore fealty 
to the pope ; and paid part of the money \Fhich he owed 
for his kingdom as the patrimony of St. Peter; whilst the 
legate, elated by the triumph of sacerdotal power, tram- 
pled on the money which was laid at his feet, as an earnest 
of the subjection of the kingdom. 

When Pandolf returned to France, he informed Philip, 
that John had returned to obedience under the apostolic, 
see, and even consented to do homage to the pope for his 
dominions; and that, as his kingdom now formed _a part 
of St. Peter's patrimony, it would be impious in any chris- 
tian prince to attack him. Philip was enraged on recei- 
ving this intelligence, and threatened to execute his enter* 
prise against England, notwithstanding the inhibitions and 
menaces of the legate ; but the English fleet, under the 
command of the earl of Salisbury, the king's natural bro- 
ther, attacked the French in their harbours, and by the 
destruction of the greater part of their armament, com- 
pelled Philip to abandon the enterprise. 

The introduction of the feudal system into England by 
William the conqueror, had infringed on the liberties en- 
joyed by the Anglo-Saxons, and had reduced the people 
to a state of vassalage, and in some respects of real slave- 
ry, to the king or barons. The necessity, also, of entrust- 
ing great power in the hands of a prince, who was to main- 
tain military dominion over a vanquished nation, had en- 
gaged the Norman barons to submit to a more severe and 
absolute prerogative, than that to which men of their rank 
were commonly subjected ; and England, during a course 
of an hundred and fifty years, was governed by an autho- 
rity unknown, in the same degree, to all the kingdo)ns 
founded by the northern conquerors. Henry the first, that 
he might allure the people to exclude his elder brother, 
Robert, had granted them a charter, favourable, in many 
particulars, to their liberties ; Stephen had renewed the 
grant ; Henry the second had confirmed it ; but the con- 
cessions of all these princes had remained a dead letter ; 
6* 



G6 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

when John, equally odious and contemptible, both in 
public and private life, provoked the people to form a ge- 
neral confederacy, and to demand a restoration of their 
privileges. 

Nothing forwarded this confederacy so much as the coi- 
currence of Langton, archbishop of Canterbury ; a man 
whose memory, though he was obtruded on the nation by 
a palpable encroachment of the see of Rome, ought always 
to be respected by the English. This prelate formed the 
pkii of reforming the government, and paved the way for 
it, by inserting a clause in the oath Avliich he administered 
to the king, before he would absolve him from excommuni- 
cation, " that he would re-establish the good laws of his 
predecessors, and abolish the wicked ones, and maintain 
justice and right in all his dominions." Soon after he 
showed to some of the barons a copy of the charter oi 
Henry the first, which, he said, he had found in a: monas- 
tery, and exhoi'ted them to insist on its renewal. The ba- 
rons swore they would lose their lives sooner than desist 
from so reasonable a demand. The confederacy now 
spread wider ; and a more numerous meeting was summon- 
ed by Langton at St. Edmund's-Bury, under colour of 
devotion. The barons, inflamed by the eloquence of the 
prelate, and incited by the sense of their OAvn wrongs, took 
an oath before the altar, to adhere to each other, and to 
make endless war on the king, till he should grant their 
demands. They agreed that they would prefer in a body 
their common petition ; and that, in the mean time, they 
would enlist men and purchase arms, and supply their cas- 
tles with necessary provisions. 

On a day appointed, the barons appeared in London, 

and required the king, in consequence of his oath 
'\'iy?^ before the primate, as well as in deference to their 

just rights, to renew the charter of Heniy, and con- 
firm the laws of St. Edward. The king, alarmed at their 
zeal and unanimity, as well as their power, asked for a de- 
lay, which was granted. The interval was employed by 
John in appealing to the pope against the violence of the 
barons. Innocent, who foresaw that if the administration 
should fall into the hands of a high-spirited nobility, they 
would vindicate the liberty and independence of the nation, 
exhorted the prelates to employ their good offices in put- 
ting an end to civil discord, expressed his disapprobation 



JOHN. 67 

of the conduct of the barons, and advised the king to grant 
such demands as should appear reasonable. 

Though the barons perceived that the pope was inimical 
to their interests, yet they had advanced too far to recede 
from their pretensions ; and they foresaw, that the thunders 
of Rome, when not seconded by the efforts of the Eng- 
lish ecclesiastics, would avail little against them. At the 
time, therefore, when they were to expect the king's an- 
swer to their petition, they met at Stamford, and assem- 
bled their forces, consistingof about two thousand knights, 
besides retainers and inferior persons without number. 
Elated with their power, they advanced in a body to Brack- 
ley, within twenty miles of Oxford, the place where the 
court then resided ; and where they received a message 
from the king, desiring to know what those liberties were, 
which they so zealously required from their sovereign. 
They delivered to the messenger a schedule, containing 
the chief articles of their demand ; which was no sooner 
shown to John, than he burst into a furious passion, swear- 
ing he would never grant such privileges as must reduce 
himself to slavery. 

The confederated nobles, informed of his answer, pro- 
ceeded without farther ceremony to levy war upon the 
king. They besieged the castle of Northampton, were 
admitted into that of Bedford, occupied Ware, and entered 
London without opposition. They laid waste the royal 
parks and palaces ; and all the barons, who had hitherto 
appeared to support the king, openly joined a cause which 
they had secretly favoured. So universal was the defec- 
tion, that the king was left at Odiham, in Hampshire, with 
1 retinue of only seven knights ; and after trying several 
expedients, and offering to refer ail differences to the pope, 
he found himself at last obliged to yield without reserve. 

A conference between the king and the barons was held 
at Runnymede, between Windsor and Staines ; a place 
which has ever since been celebrated, * n account of that 
great event. After a debate of a few < ays, the king, with 
a facility rather suspicious, signed and sealed j ^g 
the famous deed called magna charta, or the ' 

GREAT CHARTER, which either granted or secu- 191 4 
red very important liberties to the clergy, the 
barons, and the people. The articles of this charter con- 
lain such mitigations asfld explanations of the feudal law 



6S HISTORY OF fiNGLAND* 

as ate reasonable and equitable ; and also involve all the 
chief outlines of a legal government, providing for the equal 
distribution of justice and the free enjoyment of propertj'. 
The barons obliged the king to agree that London should 
remain in their hands, and the Tower be consigned to the 
custody of the primate, till the execution of the charter. 
John also allowed the confederates to choose from their 
own body twenty-five members, to whose authority no 
limits were prescribed, either in extent or duration. All 
men throughout the kingdom were obliged, under the pe- 
nalty of confiscation, to swear obedience to the twenty-five 
barons ; and the freeholders of each county were to 
choose twelve knights, who should make reports of such 
evil customs as required redress, conformably to the tenor 
of the great charter. 

John apparently submitted to all these regulations, how^- 
ever injurious to majesty ; but he only awaited a proper 
opportunity for annulling his concessions. He retired to 
the Isle of Wight, where he meditated the most fatal ven- 
geance against his enemies. He secretly sent his emissa- 
ries to enlist foreign troops, and to invite the rapacious 
BrabanQons into his servdce ; and he despatched a mes- 
senger to Rome, to complain, before that tribunal, of tlie 
violence which had been imposed upon him. Innocent, 
considering himself as feudal lord of the kingdom, issued 
a bull, by which he annulled the whole charter, as unjust 
in itself, and derogatory to the dignity of the apostolic see. 
He prohibited the barons from exacting the observance of 
it ; he prohibited the king from paying any regard to it ; 
and he pronounced a general sentence of excommunica- 
tion against every one who should persevere in maintain- 
ing such iniquitous proceedings. 

As the foreign forces aiTived along with this bull, the 
king, under the sanction of the pope's decree,* threw ofi^ 
the mask. The barons, enticed into a fatal security, had 
taken no rational measures for re-assembling their armies. 
The king was master of the field ; his rapacious mercena- 
ries were let loose against the estates, the tenants, the 
houses, and parks of the nobility ; nothing was to be seen 
but the flames of villages, and castles reduced to ashes, 

* To the honour of Langton, the primate he refused to publish 
the papal mandate. 



JOHN. 69 

the consternation and misery of the inhabitants, and the 
tortures exercised by the soldiers to cause them to reveal 
then' concealed treasures. The king, marching through 
the whole extent of England, from Dover to Berwick, laid 
the provinces waste on each side of him, and considered 
every part of the country, which was not his immediate pro- 
perty, as hostile, and the object of military execution. 

The barons, reduced to this desperate extremity, erij- 
ployed a remedy no less desperate. They applied 
to the court of France, and oiFered to acknovrledge ^^^A 
Lewis, the eldest son of Philip, as their sovereign, 
provided he would protect them from the violence of the 
tyrant. The prospect of such a prize rendered Philip re- 
gardless of the menaces of the court of Rome, w^hich threat- 
ened him with excommunication if he attacked a prince 
under the protection of the holy see ; but he refused to 
intrust his son and heir to the caprice of the English, 
unless they would deliver to him twenty-five of their most 
illustrious nobles, as hostages for their fidelity ; and having 
obtained this security, he sent over Lewis with a nume- 
rous army. 

In consequence of that young prince's appearance in 
England, John's foreign troops, being mostly levied in 
Flanders, and other provinces of France, refused to serve 
against the heir of their monarchy. Many considerable 
noblemen deserted John's party ; his castles fell daily into 
the hands of the enemy ; and Dover was the only place 
which resisted the progress of Lewis. But the union be- 
tween the English and the French was of short duration ; 
the preference of Lev/is to the latter soon excited the jea- 
lousy of the former ; and the French began to apprehend 
a sudden reverse of fortune. The king was assembling a 
considerable army, with an intention of fighting one great 
battle for his crown ; but passing from Lynne to Lincoln- 
shire, his road lay along the sea-shore, which was over- 
flowed at high-water, and not choosing the proper time for 
his journey, he lost in the inundation all his carriages, trea- 
sure, baggage, and regalia. The affliction for this disas- 
ter, and vexation from the distracted state of his afi^airs, 
increased an indisposition under which he then laboured ; 
and though he reached the castle of Newark, he soon after 
died, in the forty-ninth year of his age, and the eighteenth 
of his reign- He left two legitimate sons, Henry and 



70 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Richard, the eldest of whom was only nine years old, and 
the other seven. 

The character of John is a complication of vices equal- 
ly mean and odious ; cowardice, levity, licentiousness, in- 
gi-atrtude, treachery, tyranny, and cruelty. It is hard to 
say whether his conduct to his father, his brother, his 
nephew, or his subjects, was most culpable. By his mis- 
conduct he lost the flourishing provinces of France, the 
ancient patrimony of his family; he subjected his kingdom 
to a shameful vassalagre under the see of Rome ; and he 
died when in danger of being totally expelled by a foreign 
power, and of either ending his life in prison, or in seek- 
ing shelter as a fugitive from the pursuit of his enemies. 



CHAP. V. 

The reigns of Henry III., Edward J., and Edward II. 

Fortunately for Henry III., as well as for the nation, 
the earl of Pembroke was, at the time of John's 
\'iy?^ death, mareschal of England, and at the head of 
the armies. This nobleman, who had maintained 
his loyalty to John, was chosen protector of the realm, 
during the king's minority, by a general council of the ba- 
rons. That he might reconcile all men to the government 
of his pupil, he made him grant a new charter of liberties, 
which, though mostly similar to that extorted from John, 
contained some alterations. This was followed by a 
charter of forests, which declared offences committed in 
the king's forests no longer capital, but only punishable by 
fine and imprisonment. 

These charters diffused so much satisfaction as evidently 
to affect the cause of Lewis. The distrust which the 
French prince manifested of the fidelity of the English, 
encouraged the general propensity towards the king. A 
large detachment of the French was routed near liincoln ; 
and their fleet suffered a considerable defeat off the coast 
of Kent. After these events, the malcontent barons has- 
tened by an early submission to prevent those attainders 
to which they were exposed on account of their rebeUion ; 
and Lewis, whose cause was now totally desperate, readily 
consented to conchide a peace on honourable conditions, 
promising to evacuate the kingdom, and only stipulating, 
in return, an indemnity to his adherents, and a restitution 



HENRY III. 71 

of their honours and fortunes. Thus was happily ended 
a civil war, which had tiireatened the kingdom with the 
most fatal consequences. 

The earl of Pembroke did not long survive the pacifica- 
tion, which had been cliiefly owing to his wisdom and va- 
lour ; and he was succeeded in the government by Peter 
des Rosches, bishop of Winchester, and Hubert de Burgh, 
the justiciary. The counsels of the latter were chiefly 
followed ; and had he possessed equal influence with Pem- 
broke, he seemed to be every way worthy of filling the 
place of that virtuous nobleman. But the licentious and 
powerful barons, having once broken the reins of subjec- 
tion to their prince, could ill be restrained by laws under 
a minority ; and the people, ho less than the king, suffer- 
ed from their outrages. They retained by force the royal 
castles ; they usurped the king's demesnes ; they oppress- 
ed their vassals ; and they protected the worst kind of 
banditti in their robberies and extortions, in defiance of 
legal government. 

As Henry approached to man's estate, his character be- 
came eveiy day better known, and he was found 
incapable of maintaining a proper authority over , ^o-y 
the turbulent barons. Gentle, humane, and mer- 
ciful, even to a fault, he seems to have been steady in 
nothing else, but to have received every impression from 
those who surrounded him. Without activity or vigour, 
he was unfit to conduct war ; without policy or art, he was 
ill calculated to maintain peace. His resentments, though 
hasty and violent, were not dreaded, while he was found 
to drop them with such facility ; his friendships were little 
valued, because they were neither derived from choice, nor 
maintained with constancy. 

That able and faithful minister, Hubert de Burgh, was 
in a sudden fit of caprice dismissed by Henry, and exposed 
to the most violent persecutions. Among other frivolous 
crimes objected to him, he was accused of gaining the 
king's affections by enchantments. Hubert was expellee 
the kingdom, and was again received into favour, and re- 
covered a great share of the king's confidence ; but he 
never showed any inclination to reinstate himself in power 
or authority. 

Hubert was succeeded in the government of the king 



73 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

and kingdom by Peter, bishop of Winchester, a 
' * -.o Poictevin by birth, no less distinguished by his ar- 
bitraiy principles and violent conduct, than by his 
courage and abilities. Through his advice, Henry invited 
over a great number of Poictevins, and other foreigners, 
who, he beheved, could be more safely trusted than the 
English. Every office was bestowed on these strangers, 
who exhausted the revenues of the crown, and invaded the 
rights of the people. A combination of the nobles, formed 
against tliis odious ministry, was broken by the address of 
Peter ; the estates of the more obnoxious barons were con- 
fiscated, without a legal sentence or trial by their peers ; 
and when the authority of the Great Charter was objected 
to the king, Henry was wont to reply, " why should I ob- 
serve this charter, which is neglected by all my grandees, 
both prelates and nobility V To this it was justly answer- 
ed, " you ought, sir, to set them the example." 

So violent an administration as that of the bishop of 
Winchester could not be of long duration ; yet its fall pro- 
ceeded from the church, not from the efforts of the nobles. 
Edmond, the primate, attended by luany other prelates, 
represented to the king the pernicious measures of Peter, 
and required the dismission of him and his associates, un- 
der pain of excommunication. Henry was obliged to sub- 
mit ; but the English were not long free from the domi- 
nion of foreigners. The king, having married 
^k^A Eleanor, daughter of the count of Provence, was 
surrounded by a great number of strangers from 
that country, whom he enriched by the most arbitrary ex- 
actions upon his subjects. 

The foreign enterprises of Henry were equally disgrace- 
ful with his domestic government. In a war with Louis 
IX., he was stripped of what remained to him of Poictou. 
His want of economy, and an ill-judged liberality, obliged 
him to sell all his plate and jewels. When this expedient 
was first proposed to him, he asked, where he should find 
purchasers'? It was replied, the citizens of London. 
*' On my word," said he, " these clowns who assume to 
themselves the name of barons, abound in every thing, 
while we are reduced to necessities." 

The grievances under which the English laboured from 
the faults of the king, were considerably increased by the 
usurpations and exactions of the court of Rome. About 



HENRY Til 73 

1229, pope Honorius demanded, and obtained, the tenth 
of all ecclesiastical revenues. In the year 1240, Otho the 
legate wrested large sums from the prelates and convents, 
and is said to have carried more money out of the king- 
dom than he left in it. The king, who relied on the pop(j 
for the support of his tottering authority, never failed to 
countenance those exactions. 

The successful revolt of the barons from king John had 
rendered them more sensible of their own importance. 
The parliament, which seems to have had some authority 
in this reign, refused an aid, unless Henry would 
promise, at the same time, a redress of civil and ec- ^ly^', 
clesiastical grievances, and ratify the great charter 
in the most solemn manner. To this the king consented ; 
but, misled by his favourites, he soon resumed the same 
arbitrary measures of government. 

The conduct of Henry afforded a pretence to Simon de 
Montfort, earl of Leicester, for attempting to wrest 
the sceptre from the feeble hand which held it. ^ly^ 
This nobleman had espoused Eleanor, dowager to 
William earl of Pembroke, and sister to the king. His 
address gained him the affections of all orders of men ; 
but he lost the friendship of Henry from the usual levity 
and fickleness of that prince. He was banished the court, 
recalled, and again disgraced by the king. Being too 
gi'eat to preserve an entire complaisance to Heniy's hu- 
mours, and to act in subserviency to the minions of that 
prince, he found more advantage in cultivating his inte- 
rests with the public, and in inflaming the general discon- 
tents. He filled every place with complaints against the 
infringement of the great charter ; and a quarrel which he 
had with William de Valence, the king's half-brother, and 
chief favourite, determined him to give full scope to his 
ambition. He secretly called a meeting of the most con- 
siderable barons, particularly Humphrey de Bohun, high 
constable, Roger Bigod, earl mareschal, and the earls of 
Warwick and Gloucester. To them he exaggerated the 
oppressions exercised against the lower orders of the state, 
the violations of the barons' privileges, and the continual 
depredations made on the clergy ; and he appealed to the 
great charter which Henry had so often ratified, and which 
was calculated to prevent the return of those grievances. 
He magnified the generosity of their ancestors, who, at the 
7 



74 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

expense of their blood had extorted that famous concession 
from tlie crown ; but he lamented their own degeneracy, 
who allowed so important an advantage to be wrested from 
them by a weak prince and insolent parasites. 

These topics were well suited to the sentiments of the 
company, and the barons embraced a resolution of re- 
dressing the public grievances, by taking into their own 
hands the administration of government. Heniy having 
summoned a parliament, the barons appeared in the hall 
clad in complete armour, and with their swords by their 
sides. The king, struck with their unusual appearance, 
asked, whether they intended to make Jiim their prisoner ? 
Roger Bigod replied in the name of the rest, " that he was 
not their prisoner, but their sovereign ; but that, as he liad 
frequently acknowledged his past errors, and had still 
allowed himself to be carried in the same path, he must 
now yield to more strict regulations, and confer authority 
on those who were able and willing to redress the national 
grievances." Henry, partly allured by the hope of sup- 
ply, partly intimidated by the union and martial appear- 
ance of the barons, agreed to their demand, and promised 
to summon another parliament at Oxford, in order to di- 
gest the new plan of government. 

This parliament, which, from the confusion that at- 
tended its measures, was afterwards denominated the 
*' mad parliament," chose twelve barons, to whom were 
added twelve more from the king's ministers. To these 
twenty-four, unlimited authority was granted to reform the 
state ; and as Leicester was at the head of this supreme 
council, to which the legislative power was in reality 
transferred, all their measures were taken by his influence 
and direction. They ordered that four knights should be 
chosen by each county, Avho should inquire into the grie- 
vances of the people, and inform the assembly of the state 
of their particular counties ; that three sessions of parlia- 
ment should be regularly held every year; that a new 
sheriff should be annually elected by the votes of the free- 
holders of each county ; that no heirs should be com.mitted 
to the wardship of foreigners, and no castles intrusted to 
their custody ; and that no new warrens or forests should 
be created, nor the revenues of any counties or hundreds 
be let to farm. 

The earl of Leicester and his associates, having pro- 



HENRY III. /£> 

weeded so far to satisfy the nation, instead of continuing 
m this popular course, or granting the king those supplies 
which they had promised, provided for the extension of 
their own authority. They displaced all the chief officers 
of the crown ; and advanced cither themselves or their 
own creatures in their place. Ti*^ vrhole power of the 
state being thus transferred to them, they obliged every 
man to swear, that they would obey and execute all the 
regulations of the twenty-four barons ; and they chose a 
committee of twelve persons, who, during the intervals of 
the sessions, were to possess the whole authority of par- 
liament. 

But the stream of popularity rapidly turned against them. 
Whatever support the barons might have derived from the 
private power of their families, was weakened by their 
intestine jealousies and animosities. A violent enmity 
broke out between the earls of Leicester and Gloucester ; 
the latter, more moderate in his designs, was desirous of 
stopping or retarding the usurpations of the barons ; but 
the former, enraged at the opposition he met with in his 
own party, pretended to throw up all concern in English 
affairs, and retired into France. 

On the death of the earl of Gloucester, who, before his 
decease, had joined the royal party, Leicester en- 
tered into a confederacy with Llewellyn, prince of ^lyf^A 
Wales. Llewellyn invaded England with an army 
of thirty thousand men, but was repulsed, and obliged to 
take shelter in the north of Wales. The Welsh invasion 
was the signal for the malcontent barons to rise in arms. 
Leicester secretly passed over into England, collected all 
the forces of his party, and commenced an open rebellion. 
The power of Leicester's faction increased to such a height, 
that the king, unable to resist it, was obliged to seek an 
accommodation. He agreed to confirm the pi*ovisions of 
Oxford, and reinstated the barons in the sovereignty of 
the kingdom. The latter summoned a parliament to meet 
at Westminster, in order to settle the plan of government ; 
and, in that assembly, they produced a new list of twenty- 
four barons, whose authority they insisted should continue 
not only during the reign of the king, but also during that 
of prince Edward. 

This prince, the life and soul of the royal party, had 
been taken prisoner by Leicester in a parley at Windsor j 



76 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

and that event had chiefly determined Henry to submit to 
the ignominious conditions imposed on him by the barons. 
Edward, however, having recovered his hberty by the 
treaty, employed his activity in defending the prerogatives 
of his family. The number of his friends, and the clamour 
of the people for peace, obliged the earl of Leicester to 
consent to a second negotiation ; and it was agreed by 
both sides to submit their differences to the arbitration of 
the king of France. 

This virtuous prince had never ceased to intei-pose his 
good offices between the English factions ; and at Amiens, 
ki the presence of the states of France, of the king of 
England, and of Peter de Montfort, Leicester's son, he 
brought this great cause to a trial. He annulled the pro- 
visions of Oxford, restored to the king the possession of 
his castles, and the nomination of the great offices ; but 
he ordered that a general amnesty should be granted for 
all past offences, and declared that his award was in no 
wise meant to derogate from the privileges and liberties 
which the nation enjoyed by any former charters. 

This equitable sentence was rejected by Leicester and 
his confederates, who determined to have recourse 

A. 1). . 

■t'oaA to arms, in which they were assisted by the city of 
'^>: London. The king and the prince, finding a civil 
war iiievitable, prepared themselves for defence, and sum- 
moned to their standard their military vassals ; while Lei- 
cester, having been reinforced by a great body of Lon- 
doners, determined to stake the fate of the nation on a 
decisive engagement. Leicester conducted his marcli 
with so much skill and secrecy, that he had nearly sur- 
prised the royalists in their quarters at Lewes, in Sussex ; 
but the vigilance and activity of prince Edward soon re- 
paired this negligence. With the van he rushed upon the 
Londoners, who, from their ignorance of discipline, and 
want of experience, were ill fit^jed to resist the ardour of 
Edward and his martial companions : they were broken 
in an instant, and chased off the field for four miles. But 
when Edward returned from the pursuit, he was astonish- 
ed to find the ground covered with the dead bodies of his 
friends, and still more to hear that his father, and his uncle 
Richard, king of the Romans, had been defeated and 
taken prisoners. In this exigency, the gallant prince was 
obliged to submit to Leicester's terms, which were laconic 



HENRY in. 77 

and severe. He stipulated, that Edward, and Heniy 
d'AUmaine, the son of the king of the Romans, should sur- 
render themselves pledges in lieu of the two kings ; that 
all other prisoners on both sides should be released ; and 
that the king of France should name six Frenchmen, who 
should choose two others of their own country ; and these 
two should appoint one Englishman, and that these three 
persons should be invested with full powers to make what 
regulations they should deem necessary for the settlement 
of the kingdom. 

The prince and young Henry accordingly delivered 
themselves into Leicester's hands, who sent them under a 
guard to Dover castle ; but he had no sooner got the wholfl 
royal family in his power, than he openly violated every 
article of the treaty, and acted as sole master, and even 
tyrant of the kingdom. No farther mention was made of 
the reference to the king of France ; and Leicester sum- 
moned a parliament, composed altogether of his own par- 
tisans, who voted the royal power should be exercised by 
nine persons, to be chosen and removed by the majority of 
three, Leicester himself, the earl of Gloucester, antl the 
bishop of Chichester. By this plan of government, the 
sceptre was really put into Leicester's hands, as he had 
the entire direction of the bishop of Chichester. Leices- 
ter, however, summoned a new parliament in London. 
Besides the barons of his own party, and several ecclesias- 
tics, he ordered returns to be made of two kniglits from 
each shire, and what is more remarkable, of deputies from 
the boroughs, an order of men which in former ages had 
always been regarded as too mean to enjoy a place 
in the national councils. This period is commonly ^kf.^ 
esteemed the epoch of the house of commons in 
England, and it is certainly the first time that historians 
speak of any representatives sent to parliament from the 
boroughs. 

The earl of Gloucester, becoming disgusted with the 
arbitrary conduct of Leicester, retired for safety to his es- 
tates on the borders of Wales ; Leicester followed him 
with an army to Hereford ; and that he might add autho- 
rity to his cause, he carried both the king and prince along 
with him. The earl of Gloucester here concerted witJi 
young Edward the manner of that prince's escape. He fur- 
nished him with a swift horse, and appointed a small party 



78 f HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

to receive the prince, and guard him to a place of safety. 
Edward pretended to take the air with some of his guards ; 
and making matches between their horses until he thought 
he had tired them, he suddenly mounted Gloucester's 
horse, bade them adieu, and reached his friends. 

The royalists, secretly prepared for this event, immedi 
ately flew to arms. Leicester finding himself in a remote; 
quarter of the kingdom, surrounded by his enemies, and 
barred from all communication with his friends by the 
Severn, whose bridges Edward had broken down, wrote 
to his son, Simon de Montfort, to hasten from London 
with an army for bis relief. Simon had advanced to Ken- 
ilworth with that view, where, fancying that all Edward's 
force and attention were directed against his father, he lay 
secure and unguarded ; but the prince, making a sudden 
and forced march, sui*prised him in his camp, dispersed 
his army, and took the earl of Oxford and many other no- 
blemen prisoners, almost without resistance, Leicester, 
ignorant of his son's fate, passed the Severn in boats du- 
ring Edward's absence, and lay at Evesham, in expecta-^ 
tion of being every hour joined by his friends from Lon- 
don ; when the prince, who availed himself of every 
favourable movement, appeared in the field before him. 
The battle immediately began, though on very unequal 
terms. Leicester's army, by living on the mountains oi 
Wales without bread, which was not then much used 
among the inhabitants, had been extremely weakened by 
sickness and desertion, and was soon broken by the victo- 
rious royalists ; while his Welsh allies, accustomed only 
to a desultory kind of war, immediately took to flight, and 
were pursued with great slaughter. Leicester himself, 
asking for quarter, was slain in the heat of the action, 
with his eldest son, Henry, Hugh le Despenser, and about 
a hundred and sixty knights, and many other gentlemen 
of his party. The old king had been purposely placed 
by the rebels in the front of the battle ; and being clad in 
armour, and thereby not known by his friends, he received 
a wound, and was in danger of his life ; but crying out, 
*' I am Henry of Winchester, your king," he was rescued 
and carried to a place of safety. 

The victory of Evesham, with the death of Leicester, 

proved decisive in favour of the royalists ; but they 

yrt^f used it with moderation. No sacrifices of national 

"* liberty were made on this occasion; the great 



HENRY lit. to 

charter remained inviolate ; and they carefully abstained 
from all those exertions of power, which had afforded so 
plausible a pretext to the rebels. The mild disposition of 
the king, and the prudence of the prince, tempered tlie in- 
solence of victory. 

Prince Edward finding the state of the kingdom tolera- 
bly composed, was impelled by his avidity for glo- 
ry, by the prejudices of the age, and by the earnest \'iyvr^ 
solicitations of the king of France, to undertake 
an expedition against the infidels in the Holy Land. He 
sailed from England with an army ; but when he arrived 
at Tunis, he found Lems had died from the heat of the 
climate and the fatigues of the enterprise. Not discoura- 
ged, however, by this event, he continued his voyage to 
the Holy Land, where he signalized himself by acts of 
valour, and revived the glory of the English name. 

In the mean time, his absence from England was pro- 
ductive of the most fatal consequences ; the laws were not 
executed; the barons oppressed the common people 
with impunity ; and the populace of London returned to 
their usual licentiousness. The old king, unequal to the 
burthen of public affairs, called aloud for his gallant son 
to return, and to assist him in swaying that sceptre whicli 
was ready to drop from his feeble and irresolute hands. 
A.t last, overcome by the cares of government, and the in- 
firmities of age, he visibly declined, and expired at Ed- 
mondsbury, in the sixty-fourth year of his age, and fifty- 
sixth of his reign ; the longest reign that is to be met with 
in the English annals, except that of our late sovereign. 
He left two sons, Edward, his successor, and Edmond earl 
of Lancaster ; and two daughters, Margaret queen of Scot- 
land, and Beatrix duchess of Brittany. The most obvious 
circumstance of Henry's character is, his incapacity for 
government, which rendered him as much a prisoner in the 
hands of his ministers and favourites, as when a captive 
in the hands of his enemies. From this source, rather than 
from insi?icerity or treacheiy, arose his negligence in ob- 
serving his promises. Hence, too, v^^ere derived his pro- 
fusion to favourites, his attachment to strangers, the va- 
riableness of his conduct, his hasty resentments, and the 
suddiui return of affection. Greater abilities, with his 
good dispositions, would have prevented him from fulling 



S^U HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

into Ills faults ; or, witii worse dispositions, would have 
enabled him to maintain them. 

Edward had reached Sicily in his return from the Holy 

Land, where he had been wounded with a poison- 
1272 ^^^ dagger, when he received intelligence of the 

death of his father. As he was assured of the 
quiet settlement of the kingdom, he was in no hmiy to 
take possession of the throne, but spent near a year in 
France, and did homage to Philip for the dominions which 
he held in that country. At length he arrived in England, 
where he was received with the most joyful acclamations, 
and was solemnly crowned at Westminister, by Robert, 
archbishop of Canterbury. 

The king immediately applied himself to correct those 
disorders which civil commotions had introduced. By a 
rigid execution of the laws, he gave protection to the infe- 
rior orders of the state, and diminished the arbitrary power 
of the barons. He appointed a commission to inquire 
into crimes of all kinds ; and the adulteration of the coin 
of the realm being imputed chiefly to the Jews, he let loose 
on them the whole rigours of his justice. In London 
alone, two hundred and eighty of them were hanged at 
once for this crime ; fifteen thousand were robbed of their 
effects, and banished the kingdom ; and since that period 
they have never been so numerous in England. 

Llewellyn, prince of Wales, had entered into all the 

conspiracies of the Montfort faction against the 
127r ^^'^"^^'^ 5 ai^d refusing to do homage to the new king, 

Edward levied an army to reduce him to obe- 
dience. Llewellyn retired among the hills of Snowdon ; 
but Edward pierced into the heart of the country, and 
obliged him to submit at discretion. He did homage, and 
permitted his barons to swear fealty to the crown of Eng- 
land ; and he also relinquished the country between Che- 
shire and the river Conway. However, the insolence of 
the English, who oppressed the inhabitants of the districts 
ceded to them, raised the indignation of the Welsh, who 
again took to arms. Edward advanced into Wales with 
an army which could not be resisted. Llewellyn was sur- 
prised and slain, with two thousand of his followers ; and 
his brother David, after being chased from hill to hill, was 
at last betrayed to the enemy. Edward sent him in chains 
to Shrewsbury ; and bringing him to a formal trial before 



EDWARD I. yi 

all the peers of England, he ordered this sovereign prince 
to be hanged as a traitor, for defending the liberties of his 
native country. The Welsh nobility submitted to the con- 
queror ; and the laws of England were established through- 
out the principality. 

The king, sensible that nothing cherished military glory 
and valour so much as traditional poetry, collected 
all the Welsh bards, and barbarously ordered them ^oei 
to be put to death. It is said that Edward promised 
to give the Welsh a prince, a Welshman by birth; and 
that he invested in the x>rincipality his son Edward, then 
an infant, who had been born at Caernarvon. Thus Wales 
was fully annexed to the crown ; and henceforth gives p, 
title to the eldest son of the kings of England. 

Edward had contracted his son to Margaret, the heir to 
the Scottish throne, and by this means hoped to unite 
the whole island into one monarchy ; but this pro- loqi 
ject failed of success by the sudden death of that 
princess ; and the vacant throne was claimed both by John 
Baliol and Robert Bruce. Each of the two claimants pos- 
sessed numerous adherents ; and in order to prevent a 
civil war, it was agreed on to submit the dispute to the ar- 
bitration of the king of England. The temptation was too 
strong for the virtue of Edward. He prepared to lay hold 
of the present opportunity to revive, if not to create, his 
claim of a feudal superiority over Scotland. Accompa- 
nied by a great army, he advanced to the frontiers, and 
invited the Scottish parliament and the competitors to at- 
tend him in the castle of Norham, on the southern bank of 
the Tweed. He informed them that he was come thither 
to determine the right of the two competitors to their 
crown ; that he was resolved to do strict justice to each 
party ; and that he was entitled to this authority, not in 
virtue of the reference made to him, but in quality of liege 
lord of the kingdom. 

The Scottish barons were moved with indignation at 
the injustice of this unexpected claim : but they found 
themselves betrayed into a situation, in which it was im- 
possible for them to make any defence for the indepen- 
dence of their country ; and the king interpreting their 
silence into consent, addressed himself to the competitors, 
and previously to his pronouncing sentence, required their 
acknowledgment of his superiority. At length, after lon^ 



82 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

deliberations, Edward pronounced in favour of BalioJ, to 
whom, upon renewing his oath of fealty to England, all 
the Scottish fortresses were restored. However, he pro- 
ceeded in such a manner, as made it evident that he aimed 
at the absolute dominion of the kin*gdom. He encouraged 
appeals to England ; and obliged king John to appear at 
the bar of his parliament as a private person. Baliol, 
though a prince of gentle disposition, was greatly provo- 
ked at this usage ; he determined at all hazards to vindi- 
cate his liberties ; and the war which soon after broke 
out between France and England afforded him a favoura- 
ble opportunity. 

A petty quarrel between a Norman and English sailor 
had been speedily inflamed into a national enmity. 
^2Qo Barbarities were committed on the crews of Nor- 
man and English vessels ; the sea became a scene 
of piracy between the two nations ; and so numerous were 
the fleets engaged, that fifteen thousand Frenchmen are 
reported to have perished in one action. Philip sent an en- 
voy to demand reparation ; but not obtaining sufiicient sa- 
tisfaction, he summoned Edward, as his vassal, to appear 
in his court at Paris, and answer for these offences ; and 
on his refusal, Guienne, by a formal decree, was decla- 
red forfeited, and annexed to the crown of France. 
Some impression was made on Guienne by an English 
army, which Edward raised by emptying the jails, but 
which was soon after defeated with great slaughter ; and 
England was at the same time menaced with an invasion 
from France and from Scotland, whose kings had entered 
into a secret alliance. 

The expenses attending these wars obliged Edward to 
have frequent recourse to parliamentary supplies, 
and to introduce into the public councils the lower loqr 
orders of the state. He issued writs to the sheriffs, 
enjoining them to send to parliament, along with two 
knights of the shire, two deputies from each borough ;* 

* The charges of the deputies were borne by the borough which 
sent them. They set apart from the barons and knights, who dis- 
dained to mix with such mean personages. After they had given 
their consent to the taxes required of tliem, they separated, even 
though the parliament continued to sit. However, the union of the 
representatives from the boroughs gave gradually more weight to 
the whole order ; and it became customary for them, in return for 



EDWARD I. 63 

" as it is a most equitable rule," says he, " that what 
con(?erns all should be approved of by all, and common 
daii2;ers be repelled by united efforts." This noble prin- 
ciple seems to indicate a liberal mind in the king, and to 
liave laid the foundation of a free and equitable govern- 
ment ; and from this period may be dated the regular es- 
tablishment of the different branches composing the house 
of commons, the precedent of Leicester in the former 
reign being rather an act of violence than of authority. 

Edward employed the supplies granted him by 
his people, in making preparations against the hos- ioq/J 
tilities of his northern neighbours. He summoned 
John to appear before him as his vassal ; and on his refu- 
sal, he marched with thirty thousand foot and four thou- 
sand horse to chastise his contumacy. Some of the most 
considerable of the Scottish nobles endeavoured to ingra- 
tiate themselves with Edward by an early submission ; 
and the king crossed the Tweed without opposition, took 
Bei-wick by assault, and detached the earl of Warrenne 
with twelve thousand men to besiege Dunbar. The Scots, 
who advanced against Warrenne with their main army, 
were defeated with the loss of twenty thousand men, 
Dunbar surrendered ; and, after a feeble resistance, the 
castle of Edinburgh and Stirling opened their gates to the 
English. All the southern parts were immediately subdu- 

the supplies which they granted, to prefer petitions to the crown for 
the redress of any particular grievance ; and the king, by adding to 
the petitions the sanction of his authority, bestowed vahdity upon 
them. But it was soon discovered, that no laws could be fixed for 
one order of men, without affecting the whole ; and the house of 
peers, therefore, with reason, expected that their assent should be 
expressly granted to all public ordinances. 

With the most frequent partition of property, the kniglits and les- 
ser barons sunk into a rank still more inferior to the great nobility ; 
while the growth of commerce augmented the private wealth and 
consideration of the burgesses ; and as they resembled the knights 
of shires in representing particular bodies of men, it no longer ap- 
peared unsuitable to uniH) them together in the same house, and 
to confo-ind their rights and privileges. This event took place in 
the 16th of Edward III., or forty-eight years from the time when 
burgesses were first summoned to parliament. Thus the third 
estate, that of the commons, reached at length its present form ; it 
gradually increased in importance ; and in its progress made arts 
and commerce, the necesssary attendants of liberty and equal rights, 
flourish in the kingdom. 



84 nisTORir of England. 

ed. The spirit of the nation was broken by misfortunes ; 
and the feeble and timid Baliol hastened to make his sub- 
mission, and solemnly resigned his crown into the hands 
of Edward. That sovereign marched to Aberdeen and 
Elgin without opposition , and having reduced the whole 
kingdom to an apparent state of tranquility, he returned 
to the south. Earl Warrenne was left governor of Scot- 
land. Baliol was carried to London, and lay two years 
in the tower, and then submitted to a voluntary banishment 
to France, where he died in a private station. 

Edward was not equally successful in his attempt to 
recover Guienne ; and, at length, he and Philip agreed to 
submit their differences to the arbitration of Pope Boni- 
face. This was the last of the sovereign pontifl's 
1 QQo that exercised any authority ovei' the temporal juris- 

■^ diction of princes ; and these exorbitant preten- 
sions, which he had been tempted to assume from the suc- 
cessful example of his predecessors, but of which the sea- 
son was now passed, involved him in so' many calamities, 
and were attended with so unfortunate a catastrophe, that 
they have been secretly abandoned, though never openly 
i'elinquished, by his successors in the apostolic chair. 
Edward and Philip, equally jealous of papal claims, took 
care to insert in their reference, that Boniface was made 
judge of their differences by their consent, as a private 
person, not by any right of his pontificate ; and the pope, 
v/ithout seeming to be offended at this mortifying clause, 
proceeded to give a sentence between them, in which they 
both acquiesced. He brought them to agree that their 
union should be cemented by a double marriage ; that of 
Edward himself, who now was a widower, with IMargaret, 
Philip's sister ; and that of the prince of Wales with Isa- 
bella, daughter of that monarch. Philip was likewise 
willing to restore Guienne to the English ; and Edward 
agreed to abandon his ally the earl of Flanders, on con- 
dition that Philip should treat in like manner his ally, the 
king of Scots. The prospect of conquering these two 
countries, whose situation made them so commoJious an 
acquisition to the respective kingdoms, prevailed over all 
other considerations ; and though they were both finally 
disappointed in their hopes, their conduct was very recon- 
cilable to the principles of an interested policy. 

Warrenne retiring into England, on account of his bad 



EDWARD r. 85 

state of health, left the administration of Scotland entirely 
in the hands of Ormsbj the justiciary, and Cressingham 
tlie treasurer. The former distinguished himself by his 
severity ; the latter had no other object than the amassing 
of money by rapine and injustice. They treated the Scots 
as a conquered people ; and, in consequence, the bravest 
and most generous spirits of the nation were exasperated 
to the highest degree against the English government. 

Among these was William Wallace, a man descended 
from an ancient family, whose courage pi'ompted him to 
undertake, and enabled him finally to accomplish, the de- 
liverance of his native country. Finding himself obnoxious 
to the administration, he had fled into the woods, and of- 
fered himself as a leader to all those whom their crimes, 
or bad fortune, or avowed hatred lo the English, had re- 
duced to the same necessity. He was endowed yv'ilh gigan- 
tic force, with heroic courage, and patience to bear hun- 
ger, fatigue, and all the severities of the seasons. Begin- 
ning with small attempts, he gradually proceeded to more 
momentous enterprises ; and he discovered equal prudence 
in securing his followers, and valour in annoying the ene- 
my. All who thirsted after military fame, or felt the flame 
of patriotism, were desirous to partake his renown ; and 
he seemed to vindicate the nation from the ignominy into 
which it had fallen by its tame submission to the English. 

Wallace resolved to strike a decisive blow against tlie 
Enghsh government, and concerted the plan of attacking 
Ormsby at Scone; but the justiciary, apprised of his in- 
tentions, fled hastily into England, and all the other ofli- 
cers of Edward followed his example. Their terror added 
courage to the Scots, who took up arms in every quarter. 
Warrenne collected an army of forty thousand men in the 
north of England, advanced to Stirling, and found Wallace 
encamped on the opposite banks of the Forth. He pre- 
pared to attack the Scots in that position, and ordered his 
army to cross a brid^ which lay over the Forth. Wal- 
lace, allowing a nunmer of the English to pass, attacked 
them before they could be formed, and pushed them into 
the river, or destroyed them with the sword. Warrenne 
was obliged to retire into England; and Wallace, after 
receiving from his followers the title of guardian, or re- 
gent, broke into the northern counties of England, and 
extended his ravages to tlie bishopric of Durham 
8 



86 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

Edward, who received in Flanders intelligence of these 
events, hastened his return ; and having collected the 
whole military force of England, Wales, and Ireland, he 
marched with an army of nearly a hundred thousand men 
to the northern frontiers. The Scots were distracted by 
faction and animosity. The elevation of Wallace was the 
object of envy to the nobility ; and that hero, sensible of 
their jealousy, and dreading the ruin of his country from 
these intestine discords, voluntarily resigned his authority, 
and retained only the command over that body of follow- 
ers, who, being accustomed to victory under his standard, 
refused to follow into the field any other leader. The 
chief power devolved on the steward of Scotland, and 
Cummin of Badenach, men of eminent birth, who fixed 
their station at Falkirk, where they purposed to abide the 
assault of the English. 

The English archers, who began about this time to sur- 
pass those of other nations, first chased the Scottish bow- 
men off the field, afterwards threw the pikemen into disor- 
der, and thus rendered the assault of the English lancers 
and cavalry more easy and successful. The whole Scot- 
tish army was broken and driven off the field with prodi- 
gious slaughter. In this general rout Wallace kept his 
troops entire ; and retiring behind the Carron, he marched 
leisurely along the banks of that river. Young Robert 
Bruce, the grandson and heir of him who had been com- 
petitor for the throne, who, in the seiTice of England, had 
already given many proofs of his aspiring genius, appear- 
ed on the opposite banks ; and distinguishing the Scottish 
chief, he called to him, and desired a short conference. 
He represented to Wallace the fruitless and ruinous enter- 
prise in which he was engaged, and the unequal contest 
between a weak state, deprived of its head and agitated 
by intestine discord, and a mighty nation conducted by 
the ablest and most martial monarch of the age. If the 
love of his country was a motive for perseverance, his 
obstinacy tended only to prolong hei^iisery ; if he carried 
his views to private grandeur and ambition, he ought to 
reflect, that so many haughty nobles, proud of the pre-emi- 
nence of their families, would never submit to personal 
merit. To these exhortations Wallace replied, that, if lie 
had hitherto acted alone as the champion of his country, 
it was because no leader had yet appeared to place him- 



EDWARD I. bf 

self in that honourable station ; that the blame lay entirely 
with the nobility, and chiefly with Bruce himself, who uni- 
ting personal merit to dignity of family, had deserted the 
post which both nature and fortune invited him to assume ; 
that the Scots, possessed of such a leader, might hope 
successfully to oppose all the powers and abilities of Ed- 
ward ; and that, as for himself, he was desirous that his 
own life, as well as the existence of the nation, might ter- 
minate when they could not otherwise be preserved, than 
by receiving the chains of a haughty victor. The gallan- 
try of these sentiments was felt by the generous mind of 
Bruce ; and he secretly determined to seize the first oppor- 
tunity of embracing the cause of his oppressed country. 

The battle of Falkirk had not completed the subjection 
of the Scots. They chose for their regent John 
Cummin, who surprised the English army, and i^qq 
routed them after an obstinate conflict ; and it be- 
came necessary for Edward to begin anew the conquest 
of the kingdom. 

The king prepared himself for the enterprise with his 
usual vigour and abilities. He marched victorious from 
one extremity of Scotland to the other, and compelled 
even Cummin himself to submit to his authority. To 
render his acquisition durable, he abrogated all the laws 
and customs of Scotland, endeavoured to substitute those 
of England in their place, entirely razed or destroyed all 
the monuments of antiquity, and hastened wholly to abo- 
lish the Scottish name. 

Wallace himself was at length betrayed into Edward's 
hands, by his friend Sir John Monteith ; and the 
king, whose natural bravery and magnanimity ion J 
should have induced him to respect similar quali- 
ties in an enemy, resolved to overawe the Scots by an ex- 
ample of severity. He ordered the hero to be carried in 
chains to London"; to be tried as a rebel and a traitor, 
though he had never sworn fealty to England ; and to be 
executed on Tower-hill. Such was the unworthy fate of 
Wallace, who, through the course of several years, with 
signal conduct, intrepidity, and perseverance, defended, 
against a public and oppressive enemy, the liberties of his 
native country. 

The barbarous policy of Edward failed of the object to 



88 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 



which it was directed. The Scots were enraged at 
I l^r.A the injustice and cruelty exercised on their gallant 
chief; and it was not long ere a more fortunate 
leader presented himself to conduct them to victory and 
to vengeance. Robert Bruce, whose conference with 
Wallace on the banks of the Carron has been already no- 
ticed, determined to revive the pretensions of his family, 
and to aspire to the vacant throne. Edward, being appri- 
zed of his intentions, ordered all his motions to be strictly 
watched. An intimate friend of Bruce, not daring, amidst 
so many jealous eyes, to hold any conversation with him, 
sent him by his servant a pair of gilt spurs, and a purse of 
gold, which he pretended to have borrowed from him; and 
left it to his sagacity to discover the meaning. Bruce im- 
mediately contrived to escape, and in a few days arrived 
at Dumfries, the chief seat of his family interest, where he 
found a great number of the Scottish nobility assembled, 
and among the rest John Cummin, with whom he had for- 
merly lived in strict intimacy. 

The noblemen were astonished at the appearance of 
Bruce among them ; and still more when he told them, 
that he was come to live or die with them in defence of 
t^e liberties of his country. These generous sentiments, 
assisted by the graces of his youth and manly deportment, 
impressed the minds of his audience ; and they resolved 
to use their utmost efforts in delivering their country from 
bondage. Cummin alone, who had secretly taken his 
measures with the king, opposed this general determina- 
tion ; and Bruce, already apprized of his treachery, fol- 
lowed Cummin on the dissolution of the assembly, and 
attacking him in the cloisters of the Gray Friars, ran him 
through the body. 

The murder of Cummin sealed the conspiracy of the 
Scottish nobles. The genius of the nation roused itself; 
and Bruce was solemnly crowned at Scone by the bishop 
of St. Andrews. The English were again expelled the 
kingdom ; and Edwara found, that the Scots, twice con- 
quered in his reign, must yet be afresh subdued. To ef- 
fect this, he assembled a great army, and was pre- 
|ojyy paring to enter the frontiers, when he unexpectedly 
sickened and died near Carhsle, in the sixty-ninth 
year of his age, and the thirty-fifth of his reign. , With his 




Murder of Edward Second, 




JSdicard Second surrenderinsc his Crown, 



EDVfARD II. 89 

last breath he enjoined his son and his successor to prose- 
cute the enterprise, and never to desist till he had finally 
subdued the kingdom of Scotland. 

Edward II. was in the twenty-third year of his age 
when he ascended the throne. He was of an agreeable 
figure, and of a mild and gentle disposition; but the first 
act of his reign blasted the hopes which the English had 
entertained of him. Equally incapable of, and averse to 
business, he entered Scotland only to retreat ; he dis- 
banded his army, without attacking Bruce ; and by this 
conduct, he convinced the barons that the authority of the 
crown was no longer to be dreaded, and that they were at 
liberty to practise eveiy insolence with impunity. 

Piers Gaveston, the son of a Gascon knight, by his in- 
sinuating address, his elegance of form, and his lively wit, 
had gained an entire ascendant over the young Edward ; 
and the late king, apprehensive of the consequences, had 
banished him the kingdom, and made his son promise never 
to recall him. No sooner, however, did the young Edward 
ascend the throne, than he recalled Gaveston, gave him the 
whole earldom of Cornwall, married him to his own niece, 
and seemed to enjoy no pleasure in his royal dignity, but 
as it enabled him to exalt this object of his fond affec- 
tions. The haughty barons were offended at the superi- 
ority of a minion, whose birth they despised, and who 
eclipsed them in pomp and splendour. In a journey to 
France, to espouse the princess Isabella, Edward left 
Gaveston guardian of the realm ; but on his return with 
the young queen, Isabella, who was of an imperious and 
intriguing disposition, finding her husband's capacity re- 
quired to be governed, thought herself best entitled to 
perform the office, and was well pleased to see a combina- 
tion of the nobility formed against the favourite. 

Thomas, earl of Lancaster, cousin-german to the king, 
was at the head of the party among the barons. 
That nobleman, entering the parliament with his ^oqq 
adherents in arms, required the banishment of Ga- 
veston ; and Edward was obhged to submit ; but instead 
of sending him to his own countiy, he appointed him lord- 
lieutenant of Ireland. 

The king, unhappy in the absence of his minion, em- 
ployed every expedient to soften the opposition of the ba- 
rons to his return ; and deeming matters sufficiently pre- 



90 ^ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

pared for his purpose, he ventured to recall Gaveston, and 
went to Chester to receive him on his first landing from 
Ireland. However, in defiance of the laws and the king's 
prohibition, the barons, with a numerous retinue of armed 
followers, compelled Edward to devolve on a chosen junto 
the whole authority, both of the crown and the parliament ; 
and among other regulations sanctioned by this committee, 
Gaveston was forever banislied the king's dominions. 

As soon, however, as Edward, by removing to York, 
had freed himself from the barons' power, he recalled Ga- 
veston from Flanders ; and the barons, highly provoked 
at this measure, flew to arms, with the earl of Lancaster 
at their head. Edward left his favourite in the castle of 
Scarborough, which v/as obliged to surrender to the earl 
of Pembroke. From thence Gaveston was conducted to 
the castle of Dedington, near Banbury, where, being left 
with a small guard, he was surprised by the earl of War- 
wick; and without any regard to the laws, the head of 
the unhappy favourite was struck off by the hands of the 
executioner. When the king; was informed of Ga- 

AD 

,oiq veston's murder, he threatened vengeance on all 

those who had been active in that bloody scene ; 

but beinsr less constant in his enmities than in his friend- 

ships, he listened to terms of accommodation, and granted 

the barons a pardon of all offences. 

Immediately after Edward's retreat from Scotland, Ro- 
bert Bruce left his fastnesses ; and, in a short time, nearly 
the whole kingdom acknowledged his authority. The 
castle of Stirling, the only fortress in Scotland which re- 
mained in the hands of the English, was closely pressed ; 
and to j^lieve this place, Edward summoned his forces 
from all quarters, and marched with an army of a hun- 
dred thousand men. At Bannockburn, about two miles 
from Stirling, Bruce, with thirty thousand hardy warriors, 
inured to all the varieties of fortune, and inflamed with the 
love of independence, awaited the charge of the enemy. 
A hill covered his right flank, and a morass his left ; and 
along the banks of a rivulet in his front he dug deep pits ; 
planted them with stakes, and covered the whole with 
turf. The English, confident in their superior numbers, 
mshed to the attack without precaution. Their cavalry 
entangled in the pits, were thrown into disorder ; and the 
Scottish horse, allowing them no time to rally, attacked 



EDWARD II. 91 

them, and drove them off the field with considerable loss. 
While the Enghsh forces were alarmed at this unfortunate 
event, an army appeared on the heights towards the left, 
marching to surround them. This was composed of wa- 
goners and sumpter-boys, whom Robert had supphed with 
nnlitary standards. The stratagem took efiect ; a panic 
seized the Enghsh, who threw down their arms, and fled, 
and were pursued to the gates of Berwick. Besides an 
inestimable booty, the Scots took many persons of quality 
prisoners, and above four hundred gentlemen, whose ran- 
som was a new accession of strength to the victors. 

This great and decisive battle secured the independence 
of Scotland, and fixed the throne of Bruce ; whilst 
it shook that of Edward, whose defeat encouraged ^\-. 1 
the nobility to insist on the renewal of their ordi- 
nances. After the death of Gaveston, the king's chief 
favourite was Hugh le Despenser, or Spenser, a young 
man of high rank, and noble family. He possessed all 
the exterior accomplishments of person and address, but 
was not endowed either with moderation or prudence. 
His father, who was of the same name, was a nobleman 
venerable from his years, and qualified, by his talents and 
experience, to have supplied the defects both of the king 
and liis minion ; but Edward's attachment rendered the 
name of Spenser odious ; and the turbulent Lancaster, and 
most of the great barons, formed plans for his destruction. 

The claim of Spenser to an estate, which had been set- 
tled on the illustrious family of Mowbray, was the signal 
for civil war. The earls of Lancaster and Hereford flew 
to arms ; and by menaces and violence they extorted from 
the king an act of attainder against the Spenseil|" and of 
indemnity for themselves. This being eflTected, they dis- 
banded their army, and separated, in security, as they ima- 
gined, to their respective castles. Edward, however, hav- 
ing assembled an army, dropped the mask, and recalled 
the Spensers, whose sentence he declared to be illegal and 
unjust. Lancaster, who had hastily collected thirty thou- 
sand men, fled with his forces towards the north ; but be- 
ing intercepted at Boroughbridge, after a shght action, he 
was taken prisoner, and brought to the king. Edward, 
though gentle by nature, remembered on this occasion the 
fate of Gaveston ; and Lancaster, mounted upon a lean 
horse, and exposed to the derision of the people, was co?i 



93 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

ducted to an eminence near Pomfret, one of his own cas- 
tles, where he suffered decapitation. 

Edward, after another fruitless attempt on Scotland, 
concluded a truce for thirteen years with Bruce, whose 
title to the crown was thus virtually, though not tacitly, 
acknowledged. lie was, however, still embarrassed by 
the demands of his brother-in-law, Charles the Fair, who 
required him to appear and do homage for the fees which 
he held in France. The queen had been permitted to go 
to Paris, and endeavour to adjust in an amicable manner 
the differences with her brother. On her arrival in France, 
Isabella was surrounded by a number of English fugitives, 
the remains of the Lancastrian faction. Among these 
was young Roger Mortimer, a potent baron in the Welsh 
marches, who, by the graces of his person and address, 
quickly advanced in the affections of the queen, and at 
last triumphed over her honour. The king, informed ol 
^hese circumstances, required her speedily to return with 
the young prince Edward, Avho was then with his mother 
in Paris ; but instead of obeying his orders, she publicly 
declared that she would never set foot in England till 
Spenser was removed from his presence and councils. 

This declaration procured Isabella great popularity in 
England, and threw a veil over her treasonable en 
i'^o« terprises ; and having affianced young Edward 
with Philippa, daughter of the count of Holland 
and Hainault, she enlisted three thousand men, sailed 
from the harbour of Dort, and landed, without opposition, 
on the coast of Norfolk. She was immediately joined by 
several of the most powerful barons ; and to render her 
cause jAulai'j she renewed her declaration, that her sole 
purpose was to free the king and kingdom from the tyran- 
ny of the Spensers. •^ 

The king, after trying in vain to rouse the citizens of 
London to a sense of duty, departed for the west, and was 
hotly pursued to Bristol by his own brother, the earl of 
Kent, and the foreign forces under John de Hainault. 
Disappointed in the loyalty of those parts, he passed over 
into Wales, leaving the elder Spenser governor of the cas- 
tle of Bristol; but the garrison mutinied against him, and 
he was delivered into tlie hands of his enemies. This ve- 
nerable noble, who had nearly reached his ninetieth year, 
was without trial condemned to death by the rebellious 



EDWARD II. 1)3 

barons. He was lianged on rf gibbet ; his body was cut 
in pieces and thrown to the dogs ; and his head was sent 
to Winchester, where it was set upon a pole, and exposed 
to the insuhs of the populace. Edward himself attempted 
to escape to Ireland ; but being driven back by contrary 
winds, he was discovered, and committed to the custody 
of the earl of Leicester, in the castle of Kenilworth. The 
young Spenser, his favourite, who also fell into the hands 
of his enemies, was executed like his father, without any 
appearance of a legal trial. 

The diabolical Isabella, in order to avail herself of the 
prevailing delusion, summoned in the king's name 
a parliament at Westminster. A charge was drawn , o^)^ 
up against Edward, in which, though framed by his 
inveterate enemies, nothing but his want of capacity, or 
his misfortunes, could be objected against him. The de- 
position of the king, however, was voted by parliament ; 
and the prince his son was placed on the throne. 

But it was impossible that the character and conduct of 
Isabella could long be mistaken. The gross violation of 
every duty and every tie soon estranged from her the minds 
of men ; the proofs which daily broke out of her criminal 
commerce with Mortimer, increased the general abhor- 
rence against her; and her hypocrisy in publicly bewailing 
the king's unhappy fate, was not able to deceive even the 
most stupid and most prejudiced of her adherents. h\ 
proportion as the queen became the object of public ha- 
tred, the dethroned monarch, who had been the victim of 
her crimes and her ambition, was regarded with pity and 
veneration ; and men became sensible, that all his miscon- 
duct, which faction had so much exaggerated, hdlft becH- 
owing to the natural imbecility, not to any voluntary de- 
pravity, of his character. The earl of Leicester, now earl 
of Lancaster, to whose custody he had been committed, 
was soon touched with those generous sentiments ; and 
besides treating his prisoner with gentleness and humanity, 
he was suspected to have entertained still more honourable 
intentions in his favour. The king, therefore, was t \ken 
from his hands, and delivered over to lord Berkeley and 
Mautravers and Gournay, who ^vere entrusted alternately, 
each for a month, with the charge of guarding him. 
While he was in the custody of Berkeley, he was stili 
trep+ed with the gentleness due to his rank and his misfor- 



94 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

tunes ; but when the turn of Mautravers and Gournay 
came, every species of indignity was practised against him, 
as if their intention had been to break entirely the prince's 
spirit, and to employ his sorrows and afflictions, instead of 
more violent and more dangerous expedients, for the in- 
struments of his murder. But as this method of destruc- 
tion appeared too slow to the impatient Mortimer, he se- 
cretly sent orders to the two keepers, who were at his de- 
votion, instantly to despatch him. Taking advantage of 

Berkeley's sickness, in whose custody he then was, 
-jog^ and who was thereby incapacitated from attending 

his charge, they came to Berkeley castle, and put- 
ting themselves in possession of the king's person, they 
threw him on a bed, and holding him down with a table, 
thrust into his fundament a red hot iron, which they in- 
serted throuo^h a horn, that no external marks of violence 
might be seen on his person. The dreadful deed, howe- 
ver, was discovered to all the guards and attendants by the 
screams with which the agonizing king filled the castle, 
while his bowels were consuming. 

Thus died Edward If., than whom it is not easy to ima- 
gine a more innocent and inoffensive man, nor a prince 
less capable of governing a fierce and turbulent people. 
Obliged to devolve on others the weight of which he had 
neither ability nor inclination to bear, he wanted penetra- 
tion to choose ministers and favourites qualified for the tiTist- 



CHAP. IV. 

The reign of Edward III. 

ThiI!* party which had deposed the unfortunate monarch, 
deemed it requisite for their security, to obtain an indem- 
nity from parliament for all their proceedings. All the 
attainders, also, which had passed against the earl of Lan- 
caster and his adherents, were easily reversed during the 
triumph of their party. A council of regency was like- 
wise appointed by parliament, consisting of five prelates 
and seven lay lords ; and the earl of Lancaster was nomi- 
nated guardian of the young king, Edward III. 

Mortimer, though not included in the regency, rendered 
that council entirely useless, by usurping to himself the 
whole sovereign authority. He never consulted either 
the princes of the blood or the nobility on any pubUc 



EDWARD Hi 95 

-^neasure ; and he affected a state and dignity equal or su- 
perior to those of royalty. Edward, who had attained 
his eighteenth year, repined at the fetters in which he was 
held by this insolent minister; but so much was he sur- 
tounded by the emissaries of Mortimer, that he was obliged 
CO conduct the project for subverting him with the greatest 
secrecy and precaution. The queen-dowager and Mor- 
timer lodged in the castle of Nottingham ; the king also 
was admitted, though with a few only of his attendants ; 
and as the castle was strictly guarded, it became necessary 
to communicate the design to Sir Williarn Eland, the 
governor, who zealously took part in it. By his direction, 
the kino's associates were admitted through a subterra- 
neous passage ; and Mortimer,'^without having- it in his 
power to make resistance, was suddenly seized in an 
apartment adjoining to the queen's. A parliament was 
immediately summoned for his condemnation ; and such 
was the notoriety of his infamous conduct, that without 
trial, or examining a witness, he was sentenced to be 
hung on a gibbet at the Elms, in the neighbourhood of 
London. The queen was confined to her own house at 
Risings; and though the king, during the remainder of 
her life, paid her a visit once or twice a year, she never 
regained any credit or influence. 

Edward, having now assumed the reins of government, 
applied himself to redress all those grievances 
1 '^Qo whicl^ had proceeded from the late abuse of autho- 
rity. The severity with which he caused justice 
to be administered, soon restored the kingdom to internal 
tranquility; and in proportion as the government acquired 
stability at home, it became formidable to its neighbours. 
Edward made a successful irruption into Scotland, for the 
purpose of reinstating Edward Baliol in possession of 
the crown of that kingdom ; and in an engagement at 
Halidown-hill, a little north of Benvick, the Scots were 
defeated, with the loss of nearly thirty thousand men. 
It had long been a prevailing opinion, that the crown 
of France could never descend to a female, and 
j^g^ this maxim was supposed to be confirmed by a 
clause in the Salic code ; but the king of England, 
at an early age, embraced a notion that he was entitled, 
in right of his mother, to the succession of the kingdom, 
and +^ the claim of the nephew was preferable to that 



96 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

of Philip de Valois, the cousin-german, who had been 
uiiammously placed on the throne of Frajicc. His own 
claim, however, was so unreasonable, and so thorou.>hJs' 
disavowed by the whole French nation, that it is probable 
Edward would never have prosecuted it, had not some 
jealousies and misunderstanding arisen between the two 
monarchs. 

Determined to engage in this chimerical attempt, the 
king began with opening his intentions to the count of 
Hainauh, his father-in-law ; and having engaged him in 
his interests, he employed the good offices and counsels 
of that prince in drawing into his alliance the other sove- 
reigns of that neighbourhood. The duke of Brabant was 
induced, by his mediation, and by large remittances of 
money from England, to promise his concurrence ; the 
archbishop of Cologne, the duke of Gueldres, the mar- 
quis of Juliers, the count of Namur, the lords of Fauque- 
mont and Baquen, were engaged by like motives to em- 
brace the English alliance. These sovereign princes could 
supply either from their own states, or from the bordering 
countries, great numbers of warlike troops ; and nothing 
was wanting to make the force on that quarter very formi- 
dable, but the accession of Flanders, which Edward pro- 
cured by means rather extraordinary and unusual. 

After consulting his parhament, and obtaining its con- 
sent, Edward, accompanied by a body of English forces, 
and by several of his nobility, passed over to Flanders. 
The Flemings, as vassals of France, pretending some 
scruples with regard to the invasion of their liege lord, 
Edward assumed the title of king of France ; but he did 
not venture on this step without hesitation and reluctance, 
and a presage of the calamities which he was about to in- 
flict and entail on both countries. 

The first attempts of the king were unsuccessful ; but he 
was a prince of too much spirit to be discouraged by the 
difficulties of an undertaking. By confirming the ancient 
charters and the privileges of boroughs, he obtained from 
the parliament a considerable supply ; and with a fleet of 
two hundred and forty sail, he again embarked for the 
continent. Off Sluise he was encountered by a French 
fleet, consisting of four hundred vessels. The inferiority 
of the English in number, was compensated by their nau- 
tical skill, and the presence of their monarch. The en- 



PDWARD HI. . 97 

gagement was fierce and bloody; and the Flemings, near 
whose coast the action took place, issued from their har- 
bours, and reinforced the English. Two hundred and^ 
thirty French ships were taken; and thirty thousand of 
their men perished. Numbers now flocked to the standard 
of Edward ; and with an army of above a hundred thou- 
sand men, he investe I Tournay. That place had been 
provided with a garrison of fourteen thousand men ; but 
after the siege had continued ten weeks, the city was re- 
duced to distress ; and Philip advanced towards the English 
camp, at the head of a mighty host, with the intention of 
avoiding a decisive action, but of throwing succours into 
the place. Both armies continued in sight of each other 
without engaging; and, whilst in this situation, Jane, 
countess dowager of Hainault, interposed her good offices 
in order to prevent the effusion of blood. This princess 
was mother-in-law to Edward, and sister to Philip ; and 
her pious efforts prevailed on them both, though they could 
not lay aside, at least to suspend their animosities, by sub- 
scribing a truce for twelve months. 

Edward returned to England, deeply chagrined at the 
unfortunate issue of his military operations ; and he vent- 
ed his ill humour on the officers of the revenue and col- 
lectors of taxes. In order to obtain a new supply from the 
parliament, the king had been obliged to subscribe to nearly 
the same restrictions as had been imposed on Henry III. 
and Edward II. No sooner, however was he possessed 
of the necessary supply, than he revoked and annulled his 
concessions; and he afterwards obtained from his parlia- 
^lent a legal repeal of the obnoxious statute, which im- 
posed those restrictions. Edward had experienced so 
many mortifications in his war with France, that he would 
probably have dropped his claim, had not a revolution in 
Brittany opened to him more promising views. 

John III., duke of Brittany, having no issue, was solici- 
tous to prevent those disorders to which, on the event of 
his demise, a disputed succession might expose his subjects. 
For that purpose, he bestowed his niece, whom he deemed 
his heir, in marriage on Charles of Blois, nephew of the 
king of France ; and all his vassals, and among the rest 
the count of Montfort, his brother by a second marriage, 
swore fealty to Charles and to his consort as to their fu- 
ture sovereigns. But on the death of the aged duke, the 
9 



93 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

count of Montfort made a voyage to England ; and offer 
ing to do homage to Edward, as king of France, for the 
duchy of Brittany, he proposed a strict aUiance for the 
support of their mutual pretensions. Edward immediate- 
ly saw the advantages attending this treaty ; and it re- 
quired a very short negotiation to conclude an alliance be- 
tween two men, who, though their pleas with regard to the 
preference of male or female succession were directly oppo- 
site, were intimately connected by their immediate interests. 
Soon after, however, Montfort fell into the hands of his 

enemies, was conducted as a prisoner to Paris, and 
134^ shut up in the Louvre. This event seemed to 

put an end to his pretensions; but his consort 
assembled the inhabitants of Rennes, deplored to them 
the calamity of their sovereign, and entreated them to 
resist a visurper, who had been imposed on them by the 
arms of France. Inspired by the noble conduct of the 
princess, the states of Brittany vowed to live and die 
with her in defending the rights of her family. The coun- 
tess shut herself up in Hennebonne, which was invested 
]jy Charles of Blois, who, after several reiterated attacks, 
was compelled to abandon the siege on the arrival of suc- 
cours from England. 

After the death of Robert of Artois, whom the king of 
England had despatched to Brittany with a considerable 
reinforcement, Edward undertook in person the defence 
of the countess of Montfort. The king landed at Mor- 
bian, near Vannes, with an army of twelve thousand men, 
and commenced the three important sieges of Vannes, of 
Rennes, and of Nantz; but by undertaking too much, he 
failed of success in all his enterprises. The duke of Nor- 
mandy, eldest son of Philip king of France, appeared in 
Brittany at the head of an army of thirty thousand in- 
fantry and four thousand cavalry. Edward was obliged 
to concentrate his forces, and to entrench himself before 
Vannes, where the duke of Normandy soon after arrived, 
and in a manner invested the besiegers. The English 
drew all their subsistence from England, exposed to the 
hazards of the sea, and sometimes to those which arose 
from the fleet of the enemy ; and, in this dangerous situ- 
ation, Edward willingly accepted the mediation of the 
pope's legates, and concluded a truce for three years. By 
this tmce all prisoners were to be released, the places in 



EDWARD 111. 



09 



Brittany to remain with their present possessors, and Van- 
iies to be sequestered into the hands of the legates, to be 
afterwards disposed of according to their pleasure. 

The truce, however, was of a very short dura- 
tion ; and each monarch endeavoured to inculpate • o^j 
the other for its infraction. The parliament, whom 
Edward affected to consult on all occasions, advised the 
king not to be amused by a fraudulent truce, and granted 
supplies for the renewal of the war. The earl of Derby, 
with an English army, was sent into Guienne ; but 
Edward, informed of the great danger to which that ^'^^q 
province was exposed from the duke of Normandy, 
prepared a force for its relief. He embarked at South- 
ampton, with his son the prince of Wales, and the flower 
of his nobility ; but the winds proving contrary, he was 
prevailed on to change the destination of his enterprise ; 
and ordering his fleet to sail to Normandy, he safely dis- 
embarked his forces at La Hogue. Edward spread his 
army over the whole country, defeated a body of troops 
that had been collected for the defence of Caen, and took 
and plundered that rich city. He moved next towards 
Rouen ; but he found the bridge over the Seine broken 
down, and the king of France encamped on the opposite 
bank with an army of one hundred thousand men. 

Edward perceived that the French intended to inclose 
him in their country ; and therefore, by a secret and rapid 
movement, he gained Poissy, passed the Seine, and ad- 
vanced by quick marches towards Flanders. But as he 
approached the Somme, he found himself in the same dif- 
ficulty as before ; all the bridges on that river were either 
broken down or strongly guarded ; and an army was sta- 
tioned on the opposite banks. The promise of a reward 
induced a peasant to betray the interests of his country, 
and to inform Edward of a ford below Abbeville. The 
king threw himself into the river at the head of his troops, 
drove the enemy from their station, and pursued them to 
a distance on the plain. As the rear guard of the EngHsh 
passed, the French army under Philip arrived at the ford ; 
and Edward, sensible that an engagement was unavoida- 
ble, adopted a prudent resolution. He chose his ground 
with advantage, near the village of Crecy,* drew up his 

**= The battle of Crecy, which was fought August 26, began at 
three o'clock in the afternoon, and lasted till dark. 



100 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

army on a gentle ascent, and divided them into three lines : 
the first was commanded by the prince of Wales, and un- 
der him, by the earls of Warwick and Oxford, and other 
noblemen ; the second, by the earls of Armidel and North- 
ampton ; and the third, by the king himself. His flanks 
were secm'ed by trenches ; and according to some histo- 
rians, several pieces of artillery were placed in his front. 

The French army, imperfectly formed, and already fa- 
tigued and disordered, arrived in presence of the enemy. 
The first line, consisting of fifteen thousand Genoese cross- 
bow men, was commanded by Anthony Doria and Charles 
Grimaldi ; the second was led by the count of Alen^on, 
brother to the king ; and at the head of the third was 
Philip himself, accompanied by the kings of Bohemia, of 
the Romans, and of Majorca, with all the nobility and 
great v^assals of the crown of France. The battle became, 
for some time, hot and dangerous ; and the earl of War- 
wick, apprehei^sive of the event from the superior num- 
bers of the French, despatched a messenger to the king, 
and entreated him to send succours to the relief of the 
prince of Wales. Edward had chosen his station on the 
top of the hill ; and he surveyed in tranquility the scene 
of action. When the messenger accosted him, his first 
question was, whether the prince was slain or wounded ? 
On receiving an answer in the negative, " return," said he, 
" to my son, and tell him that I reserve the honour of the 
day to him : I am confident that he will show himself 
worthy of the honour of knighthood which I so lately con 
ferred upon him : he will be able, without my assistance, 
to repel the enemy." This speech being reported to the 
prince and his attendants, inspired them with fresh cou- 
rage : they made an attack mth redoubled vigour on the 
French, in which the count of Alencon was slain. In vain 
the king of France advanced with the rear to sustain the 
line commanded by his brother. The whole French army 
took to flight, and was followed and put to the sword, 
without mercy, by the enemy, till the darkness of the night 
put an end to the pursuit. The king, on his return to the 
camp, flew into the arms of the prince of Wales, and ex- 
claimed, "my brave son! persevere in your hononrable 
cause : you are my son ; for valiantly have you acquitted 
yourself to-day : you have shown yourself worthy of em 
pire." 



EDWARD III. 101 

III this battle there fell, by a moderate computation, 
twelve hundred French loiights, fourteen hundred gentle- 
men, four thousand men at arms, besides about thirty 
thousand of inferior rank : many of the principal nobility 
of France, the dukes of Lorraine and Bourbon, the earls of 
Flanders, Blois, Vaudemont, and Aumale, were left on the 
field of battle. The kings also of Bohemia and Majorca 
were slain. The former was blind from age ; but being 
resolved to hazard his person, and set an example to others, 
he ordered the reins of his bridle to be tied on each side 
to the horses of two gentlemen of his train ; and his dead 
body, and those of his attendants, were afterwards found 
among the slain, with their horses standing by them in 
that situation. His crest was three ostrich feathers ; and 
his motto these German words, Ich dien, I serve : which 
the prince of Wales and his successors adopted in memo- 
rial of this great victory. 

The great prudence of Edward appeared not only in 
obtaining this memorable victory, but in the measures 
which he pursued after it. Not elated by his present pros- 
perity, so far as to expect the total conquest of France, or 
even that of any considerable provinces, he limited his 
ambition to the conquest of Calais ; and after the interval 
of a i^ew days, which he employed in interring the slain, 
he marched with his victorious army, and presented him 
self before that place. 

John Vienne, a valiant knight of Burgundy, was gover- 
nor of Calais, and being supplied with every thing neces- 
sary for defence, he encouraged the townsmen to perform 
to the utmost their duty to their king and country. Ed- 
ward, therefore, sensible from the beginning that it w^as in 
vain to attempt the place by force, purposed only to reduce 
it by famine. This siege employed him nearly twelve 
months ; and during this interval, there passed in difterent 
places many other events, all of which redounded to the 
honour of the English arms. In vain Philip attempted to 
relieve Calais at the head of two hundred thousand men. 
That fortress was now reduced to the last extremity by 
famine and the fatigue of the inhabitants ; but Ed- 
ward insisted that six of the most considerable citi- ^niZ 
zens should atone for the obstinacy of the rest, by 
submitting their lives to his disposal, and by presenting, 
with ropes about their necks, the keys of the city. This 
9* 



102 HISTOKY OP ENGLAND. 

intelligence struck the inhabitants with new consternation. 
At length, Eustace de St. Pierre, whose name deserves to 
be recorded, declared himself willing to encounter death 
for the safety of his friends and compan'ons : the generous 
flame was communicated to others ; and the whole num- 
ber was soon completed. They appeared before Edward 
in the guise of malefactors ; but at the intercession of the 
queen Philippa, these excellent citizens were dismissed 
with presents. 

To secure the possession of Calais, Edward ordered ail 
the inhabitants to quit the town, and peopled it anew wjch 
English ; a policy which probably secured that important 
fortress so long to his successors. Through the mediation 
of the pope's legates, he soon after concluded a tnice with 
France ; and on his return to England, he instituted the 
order of the Garter. The number received into this order 
consisted of twenty-five persons, besides the sovereign. 
A vulgar story prevails, but is not supported by authority, 
that, at a court-ball, the king's mistress, the countess of 
Salisbury, dropped her garter ; and Edward taking it up, 
observed some of the courtiers to smile, upon which he 
called out, honi soit qui mally pcnse^ " evil to him that evil 
thinks ;" and in memorial of this event, he instituted the 
order of the garter, with these words for its motto. 

During the truce between France and England, Philip 
de Valois died, and was succeeded in the throne by 
^o-^ his son John, who was distinguished by many vir- 
tues, but was destitute of that masterly pmdence 
which the situation of the kingdom required. The chief 
source of the intestine calamities of France was Charles, 
king of Navarre, who received the epithet of " wicked," 
and whose conduct fully entitled him to that appellation, 
though he possessed talents of the very first order, if they 
had been honourably directed. This prince did not con- 
ceal his pretensions, in right of his mother, to the throne 
of France, and increased the number of his partisans 
throughout the kingdom. He even seduced, by his ad- 
dress, Charles, the eldest son of John, who was the first 
that bore the name of dauphin. But Charles was made 
sensible of the folly and danger of the connection ; and 
in concert with his father, he invited the king of Navarre, 
and other noblemen of the party, to an entertainment at 
Rouen, where they were betrayed into the hands of John 



EDWARD in. 103 

Some of tlie latter were immediately led to execution , and 
the king of Navarre was thrown into prison. Philip, tJie 
brother of the king of Navarre, flew to arms, and implored 
the protection of England ; and as the truce was expired, 
Edward was at liberty to support the French malcontents. 
Whilst the king himself ravaged Picardy, the Scots, taking 
advantage of his absence, collected an ai'my for an incur- 
sion against England. Edward, therefore, returned to 
defend that kingdom against the threatened invasion; and 
after burning and destroying the whole country from Ber- 
wick to Edinburgh, he induced Baliol to resign the crown 
of Scotland into his hands, in consideration of an annual 
pension of two thousand pounds. 

In the mean time, young Edward, accompanied by the 
earls of Warwick and Salisbury, had arrived in the 
y)r^ Garonne, with three hundred sail. Being joined 
by the vassals of Gascony, he reduced all the villa- 
ges and several towns of Languedoc, to ashes. In a se- 
cond campaign, at the head of twelve thousand men, he 
penetrated into the heart of France ; when he was inform- 
ed that the French king was approaching with an army of 
sixty thousand men. 

Near Poictiers, prince Edward prepared for battle with 
equal courage and prudence ; but the most splendid mili- 
tary qualities could not have extricated him, if the French 
had availed themselves of tfieir superior numbers, and con- 
tented themselves with intercepting his provisions. So 
sensible, indeed, was the prince of his desperate condition, 
that he offered to purchase his retreat by ceding all his 
conquests, and by stipulating not to serve against France 
for seven years ; but John required that he should surren- 
der himself prisoner with one hundred of his attendants. 
The prince rejected this proposal with disdain, and decla- 
red that England should never be obliged to pay the price 
of his ransom. 

All hopes of accommodation being at an end. the prince 
of Wales strengthened by new entrenchments the post 
which he had before so judiciously chosen ; and contrived 
an ambush of three hundred men at arms, and as many 
archers, whom he put under the command of the Captal 
de Buche, and ordered to make a circuit, that they might 
fall on the flank or rear of the French army during the 
engagement. The van of his army was commanded bv 



104 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

the earl of Warwick, the rear by the earls of Sahsbtirr 
and Suffolk, the mam body by the prince himself. 

John also arranged his forces in three divisions ; the 
first was commanded by the duke of Orleans, the king's 
Vrother; the second by the dauphin, attended by his two 
younger brothers ; the third by the king himself, who had 
by his side Philip, his fourth and favourite son, then about 
fourteen years of age. There was no reaching the English 
army but through a narrow lane, covered on each side by 
hedges ; and in order to open this passage, the mareschals 
Andrehen and Clermont were ordered to advance with a 
separate detachment of men at arms. While they marched 
along the lane, a body of English archers, who lined the 
hedges, plied them on each side with their aiTOws ; and 
being very near them, yet placed in perfect safety, they 
coolly took their aim against the enemy, and slaughtered 
tliem with impunity. The French detachment, much dis- 
couraged by the unequal combat, and diminished in their 
number, arrived at the end of the lane, where they met, on 
the open ground, the prince of Wales himself, at the head 
of a chosen body, ready for their reception. They were 
discomfited and overthrown ; one of the mareschals was 
slain, the other taken prisoner, and the remainder of the 
detachment, who were still in the lane, and exposed to 
the shot of the enemy, without being able to make resist- 
ance, recoiled upon their own army, and put every thing 
into disorder. In the critical moment, the Captal de Buche 
imexpectedly appeared, and attacked in flank the dauphin's 
line, which fell into some confusion. Landas, Bodenai, 
and St. Venant, to whom the care of that young prince and 
his brothers had been committed, too anxious for their 
charge, or for their own safety, carried them off" the field, 
and set the example of flight, which was followed by that 
whole division. The duke of Orleans, seized with a like 
panic, and imagining all was lost, thought no longer of 
fighting, but carried off" his division by a retreat, which 
soon turned into a flight. The division under king John 
was more numerous than the whole English army ; and 
the only resistance made that day was by his line of battle. 
The prince of Wales fell with impetuosity on some German 
cavalry placed in the front ; a fierce battle ensued, but at 
length that body of cavalry gave way, and left the king 
himself exposed to the whole fury of the enemy. The 



EDWARD III. 105 

ranks were every moment thinned around him ; the nobles 
fell by his side one after another ; his son, scarcely four- 
teen years of age, received a wound whilst fighting va- 
liantly in defence of his father. The king himself, speut 
with fatigue, and overwhelmed by numbers, might easily 
have been slain; but every English gentleman, ambitious 
of taking alive the royal prisoner, spared him in the ac- 
tion, exhorted him to surrender, and offered him quarter. 
Several who attempted to seize him suffered for their teme- 
rity. He still cried out, " Where is my cousin, the prince 
of Wales r' and seemed unwilling to become prisoner to 
any person of inferior rank ; but being told that the prince 
was at a distance, he threw down his guantlet, and yielded 
himself, together with his son, to Dennis de Morbec, a 
knight of Arras. 

The moderation displayed by Edward on this occasion, 
has forever stamped his character. At a repast prepared 
in his tent for his prisoner, he served at the royal captive's 
table as if he had been one of his retinue ; he stood behind 
the king's chair, and refused to be seated. All his father's 
pretensions to the crown of France were buried in oblivion ; 
and John received, when a captive, those honours which 
had been denied him when on a throne. 

The prince of Wales concluded a truce of two years 
with France, that he might conduct the captive king 
with safety into England. He landed at Southwark, ^ or-C 
and was met by a great concourse of people of all 
ranks. The prisoner was clad in royal apparel, and 
mounted on a white steed, distinguished by its size and 
beauty, and by the richness of its furniture. The conque- 
ror rode by his side in a meaner attire, on a black palfry. 
In this situation he passed through the streets of London, 
and presented the king of France to his father, who advan- 
ced to meet him, and received him with the same courtesy 
as if he had voluntarily paid him a visit. 

The captivity of John produced in France the most 
horrible anarchy. Every man was thrown loose and in- 
dependent of his fellows ; and licentiousness reigned with- 
out control. At length, in a conference between the Eng- 
glish and French commissioners at Bretigni, a peace be- 
tween the two nations was concluded on the following 
conditions. It was stipulated that king John should be 
restored to his liberty, and should pay as his ransom thi*ee 



106 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

millions of crowns of gold;* that the king of England 
should forever renounce all claim to the crown of France, 
and to the provinces of Normandy, Maine, Touraine, and 
Anjou, possessed by his ancestors, and should receive in 
exchange the provinces of Poictou, Xaintogne, I'Angenois, 
Perigort, the Limousin, Quercy, Rovergne, I'Angoumois, 
and other districts in that quarter, together with Calais, 
Guisnes, Montreuil, and the county of Ponthieu, on the 
other side of France ; that Edward should renounce his 
confederacy with the Flemings, and John his connec- 
tions with the Scots ; and that forty hostages should be 
sent to England as a security for the execution of these 
conditions. 

John no sooner regained his liberty, than he prepared 
to execute the terms with that fidelity and honour 
1360 ^-T ^^i^^ h® ^^s characterized. However, not- 
withstanding his endeavours, many difficulties oc- 
cm'red in fulfilling his purposes ; and, therefore, in order 
to adjust some disputes, he formed a resolution of coming 
over to England. His council endeavoured to dissuade 
him from his design ; but he replied, " that though good 
faith were banished from the rest of the earth, she ought 
still to retain her habitation in the breast of princes." 
John therefore came to London, and was lodged in the 
Savoy, where he fell sick and died. 

John was succeeded in the throne by Charles the dau- 
phin, who immediately directed his attention to the 
1 o/- i internal disorders which afflicted his kingdom. His 
chief obstacle proceeded from large bands of mili- 
tary adventurers, who had followed the standard of Ed- 
ward, but who, on the conclusion of peace, refused to lay 
down their arms, persevered in a life of rapine, and asso- 
ciating themselves under the name of" companions," were 
a terror to the country. At length, they enlisted under the 
standard of Du Guesclin, who led them against Peter the 
Cruel, king of Castile. Peter fled from his dominions, 
sought refuge in Guienne, and craved the protection of 
the prince of Wales, whom his father had invested with 
the sovereignty of these conquered countries, by the title 
of the principality of Aquitane. That prince promised 
his assistance to the dethroned monarch, and recalled the 

* About a million and a half sterling of our present money 



EDWARD III. 107 

companions from the service of Henry of Transtamare, 
whom they had placed on the throne of Castile. Henry 
encountered the English prince at Najara, and was defeat- 
ed with the loss of more than twenty thousand men. Pe- 
ter was restored to the throne ; but the ungrateful tyrant 
refused the stipulated pay to the English forces ; and Ed- 
ward returned to Guienne, with a diminished army, and 
his constitution fatally impaired by the climate. The 
barbarities exercised by Peter over his subjects, revived all 
the animosity of the Castilians ; and the tyrant was again 
dethroned and put to death. 

Prince Edward, by this rash expedition, had involved 
himself in so much debt, that he found it necessary, on 
his return, to impose on Aquitaine a new tax on hearths. 
The people, disgusted by this measure, carried their com- 
plaints to Charles, their ancient sovereign, as to their lord 
paramount, against these oppressions of the English go- 
vernment. By the treaty of Bertigne, the king of France 
had renounced all claims to the homage and fealty due 
for Guienne, and the other provinces ceded to the English ; 
but, on this occasion, Charles affected to consider himself 
as superior lord of those provinces, and summoned Ed- 
ward to appear at his court at Paris, and justify his con- 
duct to his vassals. The prince briefly replied, that he 
would come to Paris, but that it should be at the head of 
sixty thousand men. 

Charles fell upon Ponthieu, while his brothers, the 
dukes of Berri and Anjou, invaded the southern provinces. 
In one action, Chandos, the constable of Guienne, was 
slain ; and in another, the Captal de Buche was taken 
prisoner. The state of the prince of Wales's health 
rendered him unable to mount on horseback, or exert his 
usual activity; and his increasing infirmities compelled 
him to resign the command of the army, and return to his 
native country. Edward, from the necessity of his affairs, 
was obliged to conclude a truce, after seeing almost 
all his ancient possessions in France ravished from , q^rj 
him, except Bordeaux and Bayonne, and all his 
conquests, except Calais. 

The decline of the king's power corresponded not 
with the preceding parts of it. Besides the loss of hig 
foreign dominions, he felt the decay of his authority at 
home. During the vigour of age, he had been chiefly 



108 HSTORY OF ENGLAND. 

occupied by war and ambition ; but, in his latter years, 
he began to indulge himself in pleasure. After a lingering 
illness, the prince of Wales died, in the forty-sixth yetir oi 
his age, leaving a character illustrious for every eminent 
virtue, and unstained by any blemish. His valour and 
military talents formed the smallest part of his merit ; his 
generosity, humanity, affability, and moderation, gained 
him the affections of all men; and he was qualified to 
throw a lustre not only on the rude age in which he lived, 
but on the most shining period either of ancient or modern 
history. The king survived about a year this melancholy 
incident: he expired in the sixty-fifth year of his age, and 
the fifty-first of his reign ; and the people were then sen- 
sible, though too late, of the irreparable loss which they 
had sustained. 

The English are apt to consider with peculiar fondness 
the history of Edward the Third, and to esteem his reign, 
as it was one of the longest,* the most glorious also in the 
annals of their nation. The ascendancy which they then 
began to acquire over France, their rival and natural ene- 
my, makes them cast their eyes on this period with great 
complacency, and sanctifies every measure which Edward 
embraced for that end. But the domestic government of 
this prince is really more admirable than his foreign 
victories ; and England enjoyed by the prudence and 
vigour of his government, a longer interval of domestic 
peace and tranquility than she had been blest with in any 
former period, or than she experienced for many ages 
after. He gained the affections of the great, yet curbed 
their licentiousness: his affable and obliging behaviour, 
his munificence and generosity, induced them to submit 
with pleasure to his dominion ; and his valour and con- 
duct rendered them successful in most of their enterprises. 
His foreign wars were neither founded in justice, nor 
directed to any salutary purpose; but the glory of a 
conqueror is so dazzling to the vulgar, the animosity of 
nations is so violent, that the fruitless desolation of so 
fine a part of Europe as France, is totally disregarded by 
us, and is never considered as a blemish in the character 
or conduct of this prince. 

* It is the longest reign in English history, excepting that of 
George the Third. 



RICHARD II. 109 

Edward had a numerous posterity by his queen, Phihp- 
pa of Hainault. His eldest son was the heroic Edward, 
usually denominated the Black Prince, from the colour of 
his armour. This prince espoused his cousin Joan, com- 
monly called the " Fair Maid of Kent," daughter and heir 
of his uncle, the earl of Kent, who was beheaded in the 
beginning of this reign. By her, the prince of Wales had 
a son, Richard, who succeeded his grandfather. 

The second son of king Edward was Lionel, duke of 
Clarence, who, dying while still young, left only one 
daughter, married to Edward Mortimer, earl of Marche. 
Of all the family, he resembled most his father and elder 
brother in his noble qualities. 

Edward's third son was John of Gaunt, so called fi-om 
the place of his birth : he was created duke of Lancaster ; 
and from him sprang that branch which afterwards pos- 
sessed the crown. The fourth son of this royal family 
was Edmund, created duke of York ; and the fifth was 
Thomas, who received the title of duke of Gloucester. 
By his queen, Edward had also four daughters, Isabella, 
Joan, Mary, and Margaret, all of whom arrived at years 
of maturity, and married. 

During the reign of Edward, the parliament rose to 
greater consideration than it had experienced in any for- 
mer time; and even the house of commons, which, during 
turbulent and factious periods, was naturally depressed by 
the greater power of the crown and barons, began to as- 
sume its rank in the constitution. 

One of the most popular laws enacted by any prince, 
was the statute which passed in the twenty-fifth year of 
king Edward's reign, and which limited the cases of high 
treason to three principal heads : conspiring the death of the 
king, levying war against him, and adhering to his enemies. 



CHAP. vn. 

The reigns of Richard II., Henry IV., and Henry V. 

Richard II., the son of Edward the Black Prince, was 
only eleven years of age when his grandfather 
died ; and as the late king had taken no care to ^ ^77 
establish a plan of government during the mino- 
rity of his grandson, it behooved the parliament to supply 
the defect. On this occasion, the commons took the lead ; 
10 



110 \, , HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

and at their requisition, the house of lords appointed a 
council of nine, to whom they gave authority for a year to 
direct the public business, and to inspect the education of . 
the young prince. The government was conducted en- 
tirely in the king's name ; no regency was expressly ap- 
pointed ; and the whole system was for some years kept 
together by the secret authority of the king's uncles, espe- 
cially of the duke of Lancaster. 

Edward had left his grandson involved in many dange- 
rous wars. The pretensions of the duke of Lancaster t<7 
the crown of Castile made that kingdoi»n persevere in hos- 
tilities against England. Scotland maintained such close 
connections with France, that war with one crown almost 
inevitably produced hostilities with the other. Charles 
the Fifth, indeed, was dead, and his son Charles the Sixth 
was a minor. The duke of Lancaster conducted an army 
into Brittany ; and the duke of Gloucester, with only two 
thousand cavalry, and eight thousand infantry, penetrated 
into the heart of France ; but, though the French wer« 
overawed by the former successes of the English, these 
enterprises proved in the issue unsuccessful. 

The expenses of these armaments greatly exhausted the 
English treasury ; and the parliament imposed a tax of 
three groats on every person above fifteen years of age. 
This impost produced a most serious revolt. A spirit of 
independence had been excited among the people, who 
had this distich frequently in their mouths : 
" When Adam delv'd and Eve span, 
" Where was then the gentleman ?" 

At this time the tax-gatherers demanded of a black- 
sinith of Essex, payment for his daughter, whom he as- 
serted to be under the age assigned by the statute. One 
of the collectors offered to produce a very mdecent proof 
to the contrary, and laid hold of the maid ; which the fa- 
ther resenting, immediately knocked out the ruffian's 
brains with his hammer. The spectators applauded the 
action, and exclaimed that it was time to take vengeance 
on their tyrants, and to vindicate their liber4:y. The peo- 
ple flew to arms ; and the sedition spread from the county 
of Essex into that of Kent, of Hertford, Suny, Sussex, 
Suifolk, Norfolk, Cambridge, and Lincoln. The leaders, 
assuming the feigned names of Wat Tyler, Jack Straw, 
Hob Carter, and Tom Miller, committed the most outra- 



RICHARD II. \ 111 

geous violence on the gentry and nobility that had the 
misfortune to fall into their Iiands. The mutinous popu- 
lace, amounting to one hundred thousand men, assembled 
on Blackheath, under their leaders, Tyler and Straw, 
broke into the city, and required of the king the abolition 
of slavery, freedom of commerce in market-towns without 
toll or impost, and a fixed rent of lands, instead of the 
services of villanage. 

These requisitions were complied with ; and charters to 
that purpose were granted to them, A party of the insur- 
gents, however, broke into the tower, murdered several 
persons of distinction, and continued their ravages in the 
city. The king, passing along Smithfield, very slenderly 
guarded, met with Wat Tyler, at the head of the mob, and 
entered into a conference with him. Tyler having order- 
ed his companions to retire till he should give them a sig- 
nal, when they were to murder all the company, except 
the king himself, whom they were to detain prisoner, fear- 
lessly came into the midst of the royal retinue. He there 
behaved himself in such a manner, that Walworth, the 
mayor of London, unable to bear his insolence, drew his 
sword, and struck him to the ground, where he was in- 
stantly despatched by others of the king's attendants. 
The mutineers, seeing their leader fall, prepared them- 
selves for revenge ; and this whole company, with the 
king himself, had undoubtedly perished on the spot, had 
it not been for the extraordinary presence of mind which 
Richard displayed on the occasion. Ordering his compa- 
ny to stop, he advanced alone against the enraged muM- 
tude ; and accosting them with an aftable and intrepid 
countenance, he asked them, " what is the meaning of 
this disorder, my good people 1 Are ye angry that ye have 
lost your leader ? I am your king : I will be your leader V 
The populace, overawed by his presence, implicitly fol- 
lowed him : he led them into the fields to prevent any 
disorder which might have arisen by their continuing in 
the city, and peaceably dismissed them with the same 
charter which had been granted to their fellows. Soon 
after, the nobility and gentry, hearing of the king's dan^-er, 
in which they were all involved, flocked to London with 
their adherents and retainers ; and Richard took the field 
at the head of an army forty thousand strong. The rebels 
were obliged to submit ; the charters of enfranchisement 



112 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

and pardon were revoked by parliament ; and several of 
the ringleaders were severely punished. 

The subjection in which Richard was held by his un 
cles, particularly by the duke of Gloucester, a prince of 
genius and ambition, was extremely disagreeable to his 
disposition ; and he soon attempted to shake off the yoke. 
Gloucester and his associates, however, framed a commis- 
sion which was ratified by parliament, and hj which the 
sovereign power was transferred to a council of fourteen 
persons for a twelve month. The king, who had now 
reached the twenty-first year of his age, was in reality 
dethroned ; and though the term of the commission was 
limited, it was easy to perceive that it Avas the intention of 
the party to render it perpetual. However, in less than a 
twelve month, Richard, who was in his twenty-third year, 
declared in council, that, as he had now attained 
iQQQ ^^® ^"11 ^S^ which entitled him to govern the king- 
dom by his own authority, he was resolved to exer- 
cise his right of sovereignty. By what means the king 
regained his authority is unknown ; but he exercised it 
witli moderation, and appeared reconciled to his uncles. 

However, the personal conduct of Richard brought hira 
into contempt, even whilst his government seemed, in a 
great measure, unexceptionable. Indolent, profuse, and 
addicted to low pleasures, he spent his time in feasting, 
and dissipated in idle show, or in bounties to worthless 
favourites, the revenue which should have been employed 
in enterprises directed to public honour and advantage. 
J^ forgot his rank, and admitted all men to his familia- 
rity. The little regard which the people felt for his per- 
son, disposed them to murmur against his government, 
and to receive with readiness every complaint suggested to 
them by the discontented or ambitious nobles. 

Gloucester soon perceived the advantages afibrded him 
by the king's dissolute conduct ; and he determined to 
cultivate the favour of the nation. He inveighed with in- 
decent boldness against every measure pursued by 
lUqj the king, and particularly against the truce with 
France. His imprudence revived the resentment 
which his former violence had kindled ; the precipitate 
temper of Richard admitted of no deliberation ; and he 
ordered Gloucester to be unexpectedly arrested, and car- 
ried over to Calais, where alone, by reason of his nume- 



UICHARD II. 113 

rous partisans, he could safely be detained in custody. Iq 
a parliament which was immediately summoned, an acca- 
sation was presented against the duke of Gloucester, and 
the earls of Arundel and Warwick, who had appeared 
against their sovereign, in a hostile manner, at Haringay 
Park. The earl of Arundel was executed, and the earl of 
Warwick banished, though the crime for which they we"e 
condemned had been obliterated by time, and by repeated 
pardons. A warrant was issued to the earl mareschal, 
governor of Calais, to bring over the duke of Gloucester, 
in order to his trial ; but the governor returned for answer, 
that the duke had died suddenly of an apoplexy ; though 
it afterwards apj)eared, that he had been suffocated by the 
order of Richard. 

After the destruction of the duke of Gloucester and the 
heads of that party, a misunderstanding arose among the 
noblemen who had joined in the prosecution. The duke 
of Hereford, son of the duke of Lancaster, accused the 
duke of Norfolk of having privately spoken many slande- 
rous words of the king. Norfolk denied the charge, and 
offered to prove his own innocence by duel. The chal- 
lenge was accepted ; but when the two champions appear- 
ed in the field, the king interposed, and ordered both the 
combatants to quit the kingdom ; assigning one countiy 
for the place of Norfolk's exile, which he declared per- 
petual, and another for that of Hereford, which he limited 
to ten years. 

Hereford conducted himself with so much submission, 
that the king shortened the term of his exile four years ; 
and he also granted him letters patent, by which he was 
empowered, in case any inheritance should in the interval 
accrue to him, to enter immediately into possession, and 
to postpone the doing of homage till his return. Howe- 
ver, the king's jealousy was awakened by being informed 
that Hereford had entered into a treaty of marriage with 
the daughter of the duke of Berry, uncle to the French 
king ; and on the death of the duke of Lancaster, which 
happened soon after, Richard revoked his letters patent, 
and seized the estate of Lancaster. Henry, the new duke 
of Lancaster, had acquired by his conduct and abilities 
the esteem of the public ; and he had joined to his other 
praises those of piety and valour. His misfortunes were 
lamented ; the injustice which he had suffered was com 
10* 



114 HISTORY OP ENGLAND* 

plained of; and all men turned their eyes towards hinij as 
the only person that could retrieve the lost honour of the 
nation, or redress the supposed abuses of the government. 
While such were the dispositions of the people, Richard 
had the imprudence to embark for Ireland, in order to re- 
venge the death of his cousin, Roger, earl of Marche, the 
presumptive heir of the crown, who had lately been slain 
in a skirmish with the natives ; and he thereby left the 
kingdom of England open to the attempts of his provoked 
and ambitious enemy. Henry, embarking at Nantz with 
a retinue of sixty persons, among whom were the arch- 
bishop of Canterbury, and the young earl of Arundel, 
nephew to that prelate, landed at Ravenspur in Yorkshire, 
and was immediately joined by the earls of Northumber- 
land and Westmoreland, two of the most potent barons in 
England. Every place was in commotion : the malcon- 
tents in all quarters flew to arms ; and Henry's army, in- 
creasing on eveiy day's march, soon amounted to the 
number of sixty thousand men. This army was farther 
increased by the accession of that assembled by the duke 
of York, who had been left guardian of the realm ; and 
the duke of Lancaster, thus reinforced, was now entirely 
^master of the kingdom. 

The king, receiving information of this invasion and 
insurrection, hastened over from Ireland, and landed in 
•Milford Haven with a body of twenty thousand men ; but 
even this army, so much inferior to the enemy, gradually 
deserted him, till he found that he had not above six thou- 
sand men who followed his standard. Sensible of his 
danger, he privately fled to the isle of Anglesea, where the 
earl of Northumberland, by treachery and false oaths, 
made himself master of the king's person, and carried him 
to his enemy at Flint castle. Richard was conducted to 
London by the duke of Lancaster, who was there received 
by the acclamations of the mutinous populace. The duke 
first extorted a resignation from Richard ; but as he knew 
the result of this deed would appear the result of force, he 
also procured him to be deposed in parliament for his pre- 
tended tyranny and misconduct. ^^ The throne being now 
declared vacant, the duke of Lancaster stepped forth, and 
having made the sign of the cross, pronounced these words, 
which we shall give in the original idiom, because of their 
singularity : " in the name of the Fadher, Son, and Holy 



HENRY IV. 115 

Ghost, I Henry of Lancaster challenge this rewme of 
Ynglande, and the croun, with all the membres, and the 
appurtenances : als I that am descendit by right line of 
the blode coming fro the gude king Henry therde, and 
throge that right that God of his grace hath sent me, with 
helpe of kyn, and of my frendeSj to recover it ; the which 
rewme was in poynt to be ondone by default of gover-* 
nance^ and ondoying of the gude laws." 

The earl of Northumberland made a motion in the 
house of peers with regard to the unhappy prince whom 
they had deposed. He asked them what advice they 
would give the king for the future treatment of him, since 
Henry was resolved to spare his life. They unanimously 
replied, that he should be imprisoned under a secure guard, 
in some secret place, and should be deprived of all com- 
merce with his friends and partisans. It was easy to fore- 
see, that he would not long remain alive in the hands of 
his barbarous and sanguinary enemies. Historians differ 
with regard to the manner in which he was murdered. 
It was long the prevailing opinion, that Sir Piers Exton, 
and others of his guards, fell upon him in the castle of 
Pomfret, where he was confined, and despatched him , 
with their halberts. But it is more probable, that he was 
starved to death in prison, since his body was exposed in 
public, and no marks of violence were observed upon it. 
He died in the thirty-fourth year of his age, and the 
twenty-third of his reign ; and left no posterity, either le- 
gitimate or illegitimate. 

Richard appears to have been incapacitated for govern- 
ment, less for want of natural parts, than of solid judg- 
ment and good education. He was violent in his temper ; 
profuse in his expense ; fond of idle show and magnifi- 
cence ; devoted to favourites ; and addicted to pleasure. 
If he had possessed the talents of gaining, or of overawing 
his great barons, he might have escaped all the misfor- 
tunes of his reign ; but when the nobles were tempted, by 
his want of prudence or of vigour, to resist his authority, 
he was naturally led to seek an opportunity of retaliation. 

Henry the Fourth, in his very first parliament, had rea- 
son to see the danger attending that station which 
he had assumed, and the obstacles which he would |q(Ji 
meet with in governing an unruly aristocracy, al- 
ways divided by faction, and at present inflamed with the 



16 HISTORY OB ENGLAND. 

resentments consequent on such recent convulsions^ The 
peers, on then* assembhng, broke out into violent animosi- 
ties against each other ; forty gauntlets, the pledges oi 
furious battle, were thrown on the floor of the house, by 
^noblemen who gave mutual challenges ; and liar and trai- 
^tor resounded from all quarters. The king had so much 
'authority with these doughty champions, as to prevent all 
the combats which they threatened ; but he was not able 
)to bring them to a proper composure, or to an amicable 
disposition towards each other. 

The utmost prudence of Henry could not shield him 
from those numerous inquietudes which assailed him from 
every quarter. The connection of Richard with the royal 
family of France, made that court exert its activity to re- 
cover his authority, or revenge his death ; but the confu 
sions which the French experienced at home, obliged them 
to accommodate matters, and to conclude a truce between 
the two kingdoms. 

The revolution in England proved also the occasion ol 
an insurrection in Wales. Owen Glendour, descended 
from the ancient princes of that country, had become ob- 
noxious on account of his attachment to Richard, in con- 
sequence of which Reginald, lord Grey of Ruthyn, who 
was connected with the new king, had seized his estate. 
Glendour recovered possession by the sword ; the Welsh 
armed on his side ; and a long and troublesome war was 
kindled. As Glendour committed devastations on the 
estate of the earl of Marche, Sir Edward Mortimer, uncle 
to that nobleman, led out the retainers of the family, and 
gave battle to the Welsh chieftain. Mortimer's troops 
were routed ; and the earl himself, still in his minority, 
was made prisoner ; and Henry, though he owed his crown 
to the Piercies, to whom the young nobleman was nearly 
related, refused to the earl of Northumberland permission, 
to treat for his ransom with Glendour. 

The critical situation of Henry had induced the Scots 
to make incursions into England ; and Henry, desirous of 
taking revenge, conducted his followers to Edinburgh : 
but finding the Scots would neither submit nor give him 
battle, he returned in three weeks, and disbanded his ar- 
my. In the following year, Archibald, earl of Douglas, at 
the head of twelve thousand men, and attended by many 
of the principal nobility of Scotland, made an irruption 



HENRY IV 1 17 

into England, and committed devastations on the nortliern 
counties. On his return home, he was overtaken by the 
Piercies at Homeldon, on the borders of England, and a 
fierce battle ensued, in which the Scots were totally routed. 
Douglas himself was taken prisoner, as was Mordack, earl 
of Fife, son of the duke of Albany, with many others of 
the gentry and nobility. 

The obligations which Henry had owed to Northumber- 
land were of a kind the most likely to produce ingratitude 
on one side and discontent on the other. The sovereign 
naturally became jealous of that power which had advanced 
him to the throne ; and the subject was not easily satisfied 
in the returns which he thouglit so great a favour had me- 
rited. Though Henry, on his accession, had bestowed the 
office of constable on Northumberland for life, and con- 
ferred other gifts on that family, yet these favours were 
considered as their due : the refusal of any other request 
was deemed an injury. The impatient spirit of Harry 
Piercy, and the factious disposition of the earl of Worces- 
ter, younger brother of Northumberland, inflamed the dis- 
contents of that nobleman; and the precarious title of 
Henry tempted him to seek revenge, by overturninir that 
throne which he had at first established. He entered into 
a correspondence with Glendour ; he gave liberty to the 
earl of Douglas, and made an alliance with that martial 
chief; he roused up all his partisans to arms ; and such 
unlimited authority at that time belonged to the great fami- 
lies, that the same men, whom a few years before he had 
conducted against Richard, now follow^ed his standard in 
opposition to Henry. When hostilities were ready to com- 
mence, Northumberland was seized with a sudden illness 
at Berwick ; and young Piercy, taking the command of 
the troops, marched towards Shrewsbury, in order to join 
his forces with those of Glendour. The king had fortu- 
nately a small army on foot. He approached Piercy near 
Shrewsbury, before that nobleman was joined by Glen 
'^.our ; and the policy of one leader, and impatience of the 
other, made them hasten to a general engagement. 

We shall scarcely find any battle in those ages 
where the shock was more terrible and more con- t\J'^A 
stant. Henry exposed his person in the thickest 
of the fight; his gallant son, whose military achievements 
were after\t^rds so renowned, and who here performed his 



118 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

noviciate in arms, signalized himself in the highest degree : 
and even a wound which he received in the face with an 
arrow could not oblige him to quit the field. Piercy sup- 
ported that fame which he had acquired in many a bloody 
combat ; and Douglas, his ancient enemy, and now his 
friend, still appeared his rival, amidst the horror and con- 
fusion of the day. While the armies were contending in 
this furious manner, the death of Piercy, by an unknown 
hand, decided the victory, and the royalists prevailed. 
There are said to have fallen that day, on both sides, near 
two thousand three hundred gentlemen ; but the persons 
of greatest distinction that were killed, belonged to the 
king's party. About six thousand private men perished, 
of whom two thirds were of Piercy's army. The earls of 
Worcester and Douglas were taken prisoners : the former 
was beheaded at Shrewsbury ; the latter was treated with 
the courtesy due to his rank and valour. 

The earl of Northumberland, having recovered from his 
sickness, had levied a fresh army, and was on his march to 
join his son ; but being opposed by the earl of Westmore- 
land, and hearing of the defeat at Shrewsbury, he dismiss- 
ed his forces, and came with a small retinue to the king at 
York. He pretended that his sole object in arming was 
to mediate between the parties : Henry thought proper to 
accept of the apology, and even granted him a pardon for 
his offence. Most of the other insurgents were treated witli 
equal lenity. Northumberland, however, having formed a 
new conspiracy against the king, was killed in an engage- 
ment at Bramham, in Yorkshire. This success, joined 
to the death of Glendour, which happened soon after, freed 
Henry from all his domestic enemies : and this prince, who 
had mounted the throne by such unjustifiable means and 
held it by such an acceptable title, by his valour, pru- 
dence, and address, had obtained a great ascendancy over 
his subjects. 

Though Henry entertained a well-grounded jealousy of 
the family of Mortimer, yet he allowed not their name to 
be once mentioned in parliament ; and as none of the re- 
bels had ventured to declare the earl of Marche king, he 
never attempted to procure an express declaration against 
the claim of that nobleman. However, with a design of 
weakening the pretensions of the earl of Marche, he pro- 
cured a settlement of the crown on himself and his heirs 



HENRY IV. 119 

male ; but the long contests with France had displayed 
the injustice of the Salic law ; and the parliament, ap- 
prehensive that* they had destroyed the foundations of the 
Enghsh government, applied with such earnestness for a 
new settlement of the crown, that Henry yielded to their 
request, and agreed to the succession of the princes of 
his family. 

But though the commons, during this reign, showed a 
laudable zeal for liberty in their transactions with the 
crown, their efforts against the church were still more ex- 
traordinary. In the sixth of Henry, being required to 
grant supplies, they proposed in plain terms to the king, 
that he should seize all the temporalities of the church, and 
employ them as a perpetual fund to serve the exigencies 
of the state. The king, however, discouraged the appli- 
cation of the commons; and the lords rejected the bill 
which the lower house had framed for stripping the church 
of her revenues. The commons were not discouraged by 
this repulse: in the eleventh of the king, they returned 
to the charge with more zeal than before : they made a 
calculation of all the ecclesiastical revenues, which, by 
their account, amounted to four hundred and eighty-five 
thousand marks a year, and contained eighteen thousand 
ploughs of land. They proposed to divide this property 
among fifteen new earls, fifteen hundred knights, six thou- 
sand esquires, and one hundred hospitals; besides twen- 
ty thousand pounds a year, which the king might take 
for his own use ; an-d they insisted, that the clerical func- 
tions would be better performed than at present, by fifteen 
thousand parish priests, paid after the rate of seven marks 
a-piece of yearly stipend. This application was accom- 
panied with an address for mitigating the statutes enacted 
against the Lollards, which shows from what source the 
address came. To this unjust and chimerical proposal, 
the king gave the commons a severe reply. 

The king was so much employed in defending his crown, 
that he had little leisure to look abroad. His health de- | 
clined some months before his death ; and though he was f 
in the flower of his age, his end was visibly approaching, t 
He expired at Westminster, (20th March,) in the 
forty-sixth year of his age, and the thirteenth of ^\?o 
his reign. The prudence, vigilance, and foresight 
of Henry IV. in maintaining his power, were admirable ; 



liK) HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

his ^ommand of temper was remarkable; liis courage 
both mihtary and political, without blemish; and he pos- 
sessed man}?: quahties which fitted him for his high station 
and which rendered his usurpation, though pernicious in 
after- times, rather salutary, during his own reign, to the 
English nation. He left four sons, Heniy his successor 
Thomas duke of Clarence, John duke of Bedford, and 
Humphrey duke of Gloucester; and two daughters. 
Blanche and Philippa, the former married to the duke ot 
Bavaria, the latter to the king of Denmark. 

The jealousies to which the deceased monarch's situa- 
tion naturally exposed him, had so infected his temper, 
that he regarded with distrust even his eldest son, whom, 
during the latter years of his life, he had excluded from 
public business. The active spirit of young Henry, re- 
strained from its proper exercise, broke out into extrava- 
gancies of every kind. There remains a tradition, that, 
when heated with liquor and jollity, he scrupled not to 
accompany his riotous associates in attacking and plun- 
dering the passengers in the streets and highways. This 
extreme dissoluteness was not more agreeable to the father, 
than would have been his application to business; and 
Henry fancied he saw, in his son's behaviour, the same 
neglect of decency, which had degraded the character of 
Richard. But the nation regarded the young prince with 
more indulgence : they observed in him the seeds of gene- 
rosity, spirit and magnanimity ; and an accident which 
happened, afforded occasion for favourable reflections. A 
riotous companion of the prince's had been indicted before 
Gascoigne, the chief justice, for some disorders ; and 
Henry was not ashamed to appear at the bar with the cri- 
minal, in order to give him countenance and protection. 
Finding that his presence did not overawe the chief 
justice, he proceeded to insult that magistrate on his tri- 
bunal ; but Gascoigne, mindful of his own character, and 
the majesty of the sovereign and of the laws, which he 
sustained, ordered the prince to be carried to prison for 
his rude behaviour; and th€ spectators were agreeably 
disappointed when they saw the heir of the crown submit 
peaceably to this sentence, and make reparation of his 
error by acknowledging it. 

The memory of this incident, and many others of a 
like nature, rendered the prospect of the futiu-e reign no- 



HENRY V. 121 

wise disagreeable to tlie nation ; and the first steps taken 
by tlie young prince, confirmed all those prepossessions 
entertained in his favour. He called together his former 
companions, acquainted them with his intended reforma- 
tion, exhorted them to imitate his example, but strictly 
inhibited them, till they had given proofs of their sincerity 
in this particular, from appearing any more in his pre- 
sence ; and he thus dismissed them with liberal presents. 
The wise ministers of his father, who had checked his 
riots, were received with all the marks of favour and con- 
fidence ; and the chief justice himself, who trembled to 
approach the royal presence, met with praises instead of 
reproaches for his past conduct, and was exhorted to per- 
severe in the same rigorous and impartial execution of the 
laws. The surprise of those who expected an opposite 
behaviour, augmented their satisfaction ; and the charac- 
ter of the young king appeared brighter than if it had 
never been shaded by any errors. 

At this time, the Lollards were every day increasing in 
the kingdom. The head of this sect was sir John Old- 
castle, lord Cobham, a nobleman who had distinguished 
himself by his valour and military talents, and had acqui- 
red the esteem both of the late and of the present king. 
His high character and zeal for the new sect pointed him 
out to Arundel, archbishop of Canterbury, as the proper 
victim of ecclesiastical severity. The archbishop applied 
to Henry for permission to indict lord Cobham ; but the 
prince, averse to sanguinary methods of conversion, en- 
deavoured, by a conversation with Cobham, to reconcile 
him to the Catholic faith. But he found that nobleman firm 
in his opinions ; and Henry's principles of toleration could 
carry him no farther. The primate indicted Cobham, and, 
with the assistance of his suffragans, condemned him to 
the flames for his erroneous opinions. Cobham escaped 
from the tower; and his daring spirit, provoked by per- 
secution and stimulated by zeal, prompted him to attempt 
the most criminal enterprises. He appointed a general 
rendezvous of his party, in order to seize the person of the 
king, and put their religious enemies to the sword ; but 
Henry, apprised of their intentions, apprehended such of 
the conspirators as appeared, and rendered the design in- 
effectual. It appeared that a few only were in the secret 
of the conspiracy : of these, some were executed ; and 
11 



^^^ I ^ 2 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

|Cobham himself, who had fled, was not brought to justice 
' till four years after, when he was hanged as a traitor, and 
his body burnt upon the gibbet. 

Charles the Sixth, king of France, after assuming the 
reins of government, had discovered symptoms of genius 
and spirit ; but the unhappy prince being seized with an 
epileptic disorder, his judgment was gradually but sen- 
sibly impaired ; and the administration of affairs was dis- 
puted between his brother, Lewis, duke of Orleans, and his 
cousin-german, John, duke of Burgundy. The latter pro- 
cured his rival to be assassinated in the streets of Paris. 
The princes of the blood, combining with the young duke 
of Orleans and his brothers, with all the violence of party 
rage, made war on the duke of Burgundy ; and the un- 
happy king, seized sometimes by one party, sometimes by 
the other, transferred alternately to each of them the ap- 
pearance of legal authority. 

These circumstances concurred to favour an enterprise 
of the English against France. Henry, therefore, assem- 
bled a great fleet and army at Southampton ; and relying 
on the aid of the duke of Burgundy, he put to sea, and 
landed near Harfleur, with six thousand men at arms, and 
tvv^enty-four thousand foot. He obliged that city to fcapi- 
tulate after a gallant defence. The fatigues of this siege, 
and the usual heat of the season, had so wasted the 
English army, that Henry could enter on no other enter- 
prise; ajid as he had dismissed his transports, he was 
under the necessity of marching by land to Calais, before 
he could reach a place of safety. By this time a numerous 
French army, of fourteen thousand men at arms, and forty 
thousand foot, was assembled in Normandy, under the 
constable d'Albert. Henry, therefore, offered to purchase 
a safe retreat at the expense of his new conquest of Har- 
fleur ; but his proposals being rejected, he marched slowly 
and deliberately to the Somme, which he purposed to pass 
at the same ford that had proved so auspicious to his pre- 
decessor Edward. The ford, however, was rendered im- 
passable, by the precaution of the French ; but he was so 
fortunate as to surprise a passage near St. Quentin, over 
which he safely carried his force. After passing the small 
river of Ternois at Blangi, he observed the whole French 
army drawn up in the plains of Agincourt, and so posted 
tliat an engagement was inevitable. The enemy was four 



HENRY V. >Z? 123 

times more numerous than the English, and was headed 
by the dauphin, and all the princes of the blood. 

Henrj's situation was exactly similar to that of Edward 
it Crecy, and of the Black Prince at Poictiers. The king 
Jrew up his army on a narrow ground between two woods, 
which guarded his flank, and patiently awaited the attack 
of the enemy. The French archers on horseback, and their 
men at arms, crowded in their ranks, advanced against the 
English archers, who had fixed palisadoes in their front to 
break the impression of the enemy, and who, from behind 
that defence, safely plied them with a shower of arrows 
which nothing could resist. The heavy ground hindered 
the force of the French cavalry ; the whole army was a 
scene of confusion, terror, and dismay ; and the English 
fell with then* battle-axes upon the French, who, being 
unable to flee or defend themselves, were slaughtered 
without resistance. Among the slain were the constctble 
himself, the count of Nevers, and the duke of Brabant, 
both brothers to the duke of Burgundy, the count of Vau- 
demont, the dukes of Alen^on and Barre, and the count 
of Marie ; and among the prisoners were the dukes of 
Orleans and Bourbon, the counts d'Eu, Vendome, and 
Richmont, and the mareschal of Bousicaut. The killed, 
on the side of the French, are computed to have amounted 
to ten thousand men ; and the prisoners to four- 
teen thousand. The person of chief note, who fell -,\^^ 
among the English, was the duke of York ; and 
their whole loss is said not to have exceeded forty men. 

During the interruption of hostilities which followed this 
engagement, France was exposed to all the furies of civil 
war. The count of Armagnac, created constable of 
France, prevailed on the king to send the queen to Tours, 
and confine her under a guard ; and her son, the dauphin 
Charles, was entirely governed by the faction of Armag- 
nac. In concert with her, the duke of Burgundy entered 
France at the head of a powerful army, and at last libera- 
ted the queen, who fixed her independent residence at 
Troyes, and openly declared against the ministers, who, 
she asserted, detained her royal consort in captivity. In 
the mean time, the partisans of Burgundy raised a com- 
motion in Paris. Lisle Adam, one of the duke's captains, 
was received into the city, and headed the insurrection ; 
the person of the king was seized ; the dauphin escaped 
with difficulty; and the count of Armagnac, the chancellor. 



124 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

and the principal adherents of the Orleans party, were 
inhumanly put to death. 

Henry the Fifth again landed in Normandy, at the head 
of twenty-five thousand men. Having subdued all the 
lower Normandy, he formed the seige of Rouen, of which, 
at length, he made himself master. The duke of Burgundy 
was assassinated by the treacher)'^ of the dauphin ; and his 
son thought himself bound to revenge the murder of his 
father. A league was concluded at Arras between Henry 
and the young duke of Burgundy, who agreed to every 
demand made by that monarch. By this treaty, which 
was concluded at Troyes, in the names of the kings of 
France and England, and the duke of Burgundy, 
it was stipulated, that Charles, during his life, i^Qn 
should enjoy the title and dignity of king of France ; 
that Henry should be declared heir of the monarchy, and 
immediately intrusted with the reins of government, and 
that kingdom should pass to his heirs general; that France 
and Eno^land should ever be united under one kine", but 
should still retain their several usages, customs, and pri- 
vileges ; and that Henry should join his arms to those of 
king Charles and the duke of Burgundy, for the purpose 
of subduing the adherents of Charles the dauphin. 

To push his present advantages, Henry, a few days after, 
espoused the princess Catharine, carried his father-in-law 
to Paris, and put himself in possession of that capital. 
He then turned his arms with success against the dauphin, 
who, as soon as he heard of the treaty of Troyes, had 
assumed the title of regent. That prince, chased beyond 
the Loire, almost entirely deserted by the northern pro- 
vinces, and pursued into the south by the English and Bur- 
gundians, prepared to meet with fortitude the destruction 
which seemed inevitable. To crown the prosperity of 
Henry, his queen Catharine was delivered of a son, who 
was called by his father's name, and whose birth was ce- 
lebrated by equal rejoicings in Paris and in London. 

The gloiy of Henry, however, had now reached its sum- 
mit. He was seized with a fistula, a complaint which the 
ignorance of the age rendered mortal. Sensible of his 
approaching end, he devoted the few remaining moments 
of life to the concerns of his kingdom and family, and 
Ko the pious duties of religion. To the duke of Bedford, 
his elder brother, he left the regency of France ; to the 



HENRY VI. 125 

duke of Gloucester, his younger brother, he committed 
that of England ; and to the earl of Warwick he entrust- 
ed the care of his son's person and education. He 
expired in the thirty-foui'th year of his age, and i^oo 
the tenth of his reign. ^. '^ 

Henry the Fifth possessed many eminent virtues, which 
were unstained by any other blemish than ambition and 
the love of glory. His talents were equally distinguished 
in the field and the cabinet ; and whilst we admire the 
boldness of his enterprises, we cannot refuse our praise to 
the prudence and valour by which they were conducted. 
His affability attached his friends to his seiTice ; and his 
address and clemency vanquished his enemies. His un- 
ceasing attention to the administration of justice, and his 
maintenance of discipline in the armies, alleviated both 
to France and England the calamities inseparable from 
those wars in which his short and splendid reign was al- 
most entirely occupied. The exterior figure of this great 
prince, as well as his deportment, was engaging. His 
stature was somewhat above the middle size ; his coun- 
tenance beautiful; his limbs genteel and slender, but 
full of vigour ; and he excelled in all warlike and manly 
exercises. He left by his queen, Catharine of France, 
only one son, not full nine months old ; whose misfortunes, 
in the course of his life, surpassed all the glories and suc- 
cesses of his father. 

Catharine of France, Henry's widow, married, soon after 
his death, a Welsh gentleman, Sir Owen Tudor, said to be 
descended from the ancient princes of that country : she 
bore him two sons, Edmund and Jasper, of whom the eldest 
was created earl of Richmond ; the second, earl of Pem- 
broke. The family of Tudor, first raised to distinction by 
this alliance, mounted afterwards the throne of England. 



CHAP. vin. 

The reigns of Henry F/., Edward IV., and Edward V. 
During the reign of the princes of the house of Lancas- 
ter, the authority of parliament had been more confirmed, 
arid the privileges of the people more regarded, than in 
any former period. Without attending to the strict letter 
of the deceased monarch's recommendation, the lords and 
commons appointed the duke of Bedford ©ro^ec^or or s^uar 
11* 



^'^^^ \ 2 l^ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

dian of the kingdom ; they invested the duke of Gloucester 
with the same dignity during the absence of his elder bro- 
ther ; and, in order to hmit the power of both these princes, 
they appointed a council, without whose advice and appro- 
bation no measure of importance could be determined. 
The person and education of the infant prince were com- 
mitted to Henry Beaufort, bishop of Winchester, his great 
uncle, who, as his family could never have any pretensions 
to the crown, might safely, they thought, be intrusted with 
that important charge. 

The conquest of France was the first object of the new 
government ; and, on a supei-ficial view of the state of af- 
fairs, every advantage seemed to be on the side of the 
English. Though Henry was an infant, the duke of Bed- 
ford was the most accomplished prince of his age ; and 
the whole power of England was at his command. He 
was at the head of armies accustomed to victory ; he was 
seconded by the most renowned generals of the age ; and 
besides Guienne, the ancient inheritance of England, he was 
master of Paris, and of almost all the northern provinces. 

But Charles, notwithstanding his present inferiority, 
possessed some advantages which promised him success. 
Fie was the true and undoubted heir of the monarchy ; and 
all Frenchmen, who knew the interest, or desired the inde- 
pendence of their country, turned their eyes towards him 
as their sole resource. Though only in his twentieth year, 
he was of the most friendly and benign disposition, of 
easy and familiar manners, and of a just, though not a 
very vigorous understanding. The love of pleasure often 
seduced him into indolence ; but, amidst all his irregulari- 
ties, the goodness of his heart still shone forth ; and by 
exerting at intervals his courage and activity, he proved 
that his remissness did not proceed from the want of am- 
bition or personal valour. 

The resentment of the duke of Burgundy against Charles, 
still continued ; and the duke of Bedford, that he might 
corroborate national connections by private ties, concluded 
his own marriage with the princess of Burgimdy, which 
had been stipulated by the treaty of Arras. 

But the duke of Bedford was not so much employed in 
negotiations, as to neglect the operations of war. A con- 
siderable advantage was gained over the French, in the 
battle of Crevant, by the united forces of England and 



HENRY Vt. , I2t 

Burgundy. In the mean time, the duke of Bedford was 
engaged in the siege of Yvri in Normandy ; and the go- 
vernor, finding his resources exhausted, agreed to surren- 
der the town, if not Veheved by a certain day. Charles, 
informed of these conditions, determined to make an at- 
tempt for saving the place ; and collecting an army of 
fourteen thousand men, of whom one half were Scots, he 
entrusted it to the earl of Buchan, constable of France. 
When the constable arrived within a few leagues of Yvri, 
he found that the place had already surrendered ; but he 
immediately invested Verneuil, which he carried without 
difficulty. On the approach of the duke of Bedford, Bu- 
chan called a council of war, in order to deliberate on the 
conduct necessary to be pursued. The wiser part of the 
council declared for a retreat ; but a vain point of honour 
determined the assembly to await the arrival of the duke 
of Bedford. 

In this action, the numbers of the contending armies 
were nearly equal ; and the battle was fierce and well dis- 
puted. At length, the duke of Bedford, at the head of the 
men at arms, broke the ranks of the French, chased them 
off the field, and rendered the victory complete and deci- 
sive. Verneuil was surrendered next day by capitulation. 

The fortunes of Charles now appeared almost desperate, 
when an incident happened which lost the English an op- 
portunity of completing their conquests. Jaqueline, coun- 
tess of Hainault and Holland, and heiress of these pro- 
vinces, had espoused John, duke of Brabant, cousin-gfer- 
man to the duke of Burgundy. The marriage had been 
dictated by motives of policy ; but the duke of Brabant's 
weakness, both of body and mind, inspired the countess 
with contempt, v/hich soon proceeded to antipathy. Im- 
patient of effecting her purpose, she escaped into England, 
and solicited the protection of the duke of Gloucester. 
The impetuous passions of that prince, and the prospect of 
inheriting her rich inheritance, induced him to ojfer him- 
self to her as a husband ; and he entered into a contract 
of marriage with Jaqueline, and immediately attempted 
to render himself master of her dominions. The duke of 
Burgundy resented the injury offered to the duke of Bra- 
bant, his near relation, and marched troops to his support; 
the quan-el, which was at first political, soon became per- 
sonal ; and the protector, instead of improving the victoiy 



128 \ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

gained at Verneuilj found himself obliged to return to Eng- 
land, that he might try, by his councils and authority, to 
moderate the measures of the duke of Gloucester. 

The pope annulled Jaqueline's contract with the duke 
of Gloucester ; and Humphrey, despairing of success, mar- 
ried another lady, who had lived some time with him as 
his mistress. The duke of Brabant died ; and his widow, 
before she could recover possession of her dominions, was 
obliged to declare the duke of Burgiaidy her heir, in case 
she should die without issue, and to promise never to marry 
without his consent. This affair, however, left an unfa- 
vourable impression on the mind of Philip, and excited an 
extreme jealousy of the English. About the same time, 
the duke of Brittany withdrew himself from the alliance 
with England ; his defection was followed by that of his 
brother, the count of Richemont ; and both these princes 
joined the standard of their legitimate sovereign, Charles 
the Seventh. 

Indignant at the conduct of the duke of Brittany, the 
duke of Bedford, on his arrival in France, secretly assem- 
bled a considerable army, and suddenly invading the pro- 
vince of Brittany, compelled its sovereign to renounce his 
alliance with France, and to yield homage to Henry for 
his duchy. Being thus freed from a dangerous enemy, 
the English prince resolved to invest the city of 
^19^ ^I'leans, which v/as so situated between the pro- 
vinces commanded by Henry, and tbose possessed 
by Charles, as to afford an easy entrance into either. He 
committed the conduct of the enterprise to the earl of Sa- 
lisbury, who had greatly distinguished himself by his mili- 
tary talents during the present war. On the other hand, 
the French king reinforced the garrison, and replenished 
the magazines, and appointed as governor the lord of 
(Jaucur, a brave and experienced officer. 

The earl of Salisbury approached the place with an ar- 
my of ten thousand men, and was killed by a cannon shot 
in a successful attack on the fortifications. The earl ot 
Suffolk succeeded to the command ; and being reinforced 
by large bodies of EngUsh and Burgundians, he com 
pletely invested Orleans. The inclemency of the season 
and the rigour of the winter, could not overcome the per- 
severance of the besiegers, who seemed daily advancing 
to the completion of their enterprise. In order to distress 



HENRY VI. 129 

the enemy, the French had ravaged and exhausted the 
whole surrounding country ; and the English were com- 
pelled to draw their subsistence from a considerable dis- 
tance. A convoy of provisions was escorted by Sir John 
Falstoffe, with a detachment of two thousand five hundred 
men. Falstofte, being attacked by a body of four thou- 
sand French, under the command of the counts of Cler- 
mont and Dunois, drew up his men behind the wagons ; 
when the French were defeated by their own impetuosity, 
and five hundred of them perished on the field. 

Charles had now only one expedient left for preserving 
that city. The duke of Orleans, still a prisoner in Eng- 
land, had prevailed on the duke of Gloucester and his 
council to consent to a neutrality in his demesnes, which 
should be sequestered during the war into the hands of 
the duke of Burgundy ; but this proposal was rejected by 
the duke of Bedford, who replied, that " he was not in a 
humour to beat the bushes, whilst others ran away with 
the game." This answer disgusted the duke of Burgun- 
dy, who separated his forces from those of the English ; 
but the latter pressed the siege with increased ardour ; 
and scarcity was already experienced by the garrison and 
inhabitants. 

Charles, almost reduced to despair, entertained thoughts 
of retiring with the remains of his army into Dauphine 
and Languedoc ; but he was diverted from his purpose by 
the intreaties of his queen, Mary of Anjou, a princess of 
prudence and spirit, and by the remonstrances of his beau- 
tiful mistress, the celebrated Agnes Sorele. 

In the village of Domremi, near Vaucouleurs, on the 
borders of Lorraine, lived a country girl, called Joan d'Arc, 
who was a servant in a small inn, and who, having been 
accustomed to ride the horses of her master's guests to 
water, had acquired a degree of hardihood, which enabled 
her to endure the fatigiies of war. The present situation 
of France was the common topic of conversation. Joan, 
inflamed by the general sentiment, fancied that she was 
destined by heaven to re-establish the throne of her sove ■ 
reign ; and the intrepiditj^of her mind led her to despise 
the dangers which would naturally attend such an attempt. 
She procured admission to Baudricourt, the governor of 
Vaucouleurs ; and declared to him, that she had been ex- 
horted by visions and voices to achieve the deliverance of 



130 ^ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

her countiy. Baudricourt, either equally credulous him 
self, or sufficiently penetrating to foresee the effect such 
an enthusiast might have on the minds of the vulgar, 
gave her an escort to the French court, which at that time 
resided at Chinon. 

On her arrival, she is said to have distmguished Charles, 
though he purposely remained in the crowd of his cour- 
tiers, and had divested himself of every ensign of royalty ; 
to have offered him to raise the siege of Orleans, and to 
conduct him to Rheims, there to be crowned and anointed ; 
and to have demanded, as the instrument of her future 
victories, a sword which was kept in the church of St. 
Catharine, of Firebois, and which, though she had never 
seen it, she described by its particular marks. Charles 
and his ministers pretended to examine her claims with 
scrupulous exactness ; and her mission was pronounced 
authentic and supernatural by an assemblage of doctors 
and theologians, and by the parliament of France, then 
residing at Foictiers. 

To essay the power of Joan, she was sent to Blois, 
where a convoy was already provided for the relief of Or- 
leans, and an army of ten thousand men were assembled 
to escort it. The holy maid marched at the head of the 
troops, and displayed in her hand a consecrated banner, 
on which was represented the Supreme Being holding the 
globe of the earth. The English affected to deride the 
maid and her heavenly commission ; but the common 
soldiers were insensibly impressed with horror, and waited 
.with anxious dread the issue of these extraordinary pre- 
parations. In this state of the public mind, the earl of 
Suffolk durst not venture an attack ; and the French army 
returned to Blois without interruption. The maid enter- 
ed the city of Orleans, arrayed in her military garb, and 
displaying her consecrated standard, and was received by 
the inhabitants as a celestial deliverer. A second convoy 
approached the city, on the side of Bausse ; and the wa- 
gons and troops passed without interruption between the 
redoubts of the English, who, formerly elated with victory, 
and impatient for action, beh#d the enterprises of their 
enemies in silent astonishment and religious awe. The 
maid seized the critical moment, and exhorting the garri- 
son to attack the enemy in their entrenchments, the Eng- 
lish were successively chased from their posts with the 



HENRY VI. Ifi 131 

lo«s of above six thousand men. In vain did the English 
gen.erals oppose the prevailing opinion of supernatural 
inriuence ; the English had lost their wonted courage and 
contidence, and were seized with amazement and despair. 

Unable to remain longer in the presence of a victorious 
enemy, the earl of Suffolk raised the siege, and retired to 
Jergeau, which was attacked by the French, under the 
command of Joan. On this occasion, the maid displayed 
her usual intrepidity, and led the attack. The place was 
obstinately defended ; but the English were at length over- 
powered, and Suffolk was obliged to yield himself prisoner. 
The remainder of the English army, commanded by Fal- 
stoffe, Scales, and Talbot, were pressed by the constable 
Richemont. They were overtaken at the village of Fatay ; 
and oppressed by their fears, they immediately fled. Two 
thousand of the English were slaughtered ; and both Scales 
and Talbot were made prisoners. 

The maid had fulfilled one part of her promise ; and 
she now strongly insisted that the king should be crowned 
at Rheims. The city itself lay in a distant part of the 
kingdom, and was in the hands of the English ; and the 
whole road whicb led to it was occupied by their garri- 
sons. However, Charles resolved to follow the exhorta- 
tions of his warlike prophetess ; and he set out for Rheims, 
at the head of twelve thousand men. Troys and Chalons 
opened their gates to him ; and he was admitted intQ 
Rheims, where the ceremony of his coronation was per- 
formed. From this act, as from a heavenly commission, 
Charles seemed to derive an additional title to the crown, 
and many towns in the neighbourhood immediately sub- 
mitted to his authority. 

The abilities of the duke of Bedford were never dis- 
played to more advantage than on this occasion. 
He put all the English garrisons in a posture of I'to-^ 
defence ; he retained the Parisians in obedience by 
alternately employing caresses and menaces ; and he had 
the address to renew, in this dangerous crisis, his alliance 
with the duke of Burgundy, who had begun to waver in 
his fidelity. The French army, which consisted chiefly 
of volunteers, soon after disbanded ; and Charles, after 
having possessed himself of Laval, Lagni, and St. Denys, 
retired to Bourges. Be Iford caused Henry the Sixth to 
be crowned and anointe.. at Paris, and exacted an oath 



132 (5X HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

of allegiance from all who lived m the provinces still pos • 
sessed by England. 

After the coronation of Charles at Rheims, the maid oi 
Orleans declared that her mission was now fulfilled ; but 
the count of Dunois exhorted her to persevere till the 
English should be finally expelled. Overcome by his im- 
portunities, she had thrown herself into the town of Com- 
peigne, which was at that time besieged by the duke of 
Bedford, assisted by the earls of Arundel and Suftolk. In 
a sally, she was deserted by her friends, probably out of 
envy ; and being surrounded by the enemy, she was taken 
prisoner. The duke of Bedford purchased the captive 
from John of Luxemburgh, into whose hands she had fal- 
len, and commenced a prosecution against her, which, 
whether undertaken from policy or revenge, was equally 
barbarous and dishonourable. She was tried for sorcery, 
impiety, idolatry, and magic ; and though harassed by in- 
terrogatories for the space of four hours, she betrayed no 
weakness or womanish submission, but answered with 
firmness and intrepidity. However, she was convicted of 
all the crimes of which she had been accused, aggravated 
by heresy ; her revelations were declared to be the inven- 
tions of the devil to delude the people ; and she was sen- 
tenced to be burnt in the market place of Rouen. The 
inhuman sentence was accordingly executed ; and the un- 
happy victim eypiated by her death the signal services 
which she had rendered to her prince and her country. 

The affairs of the English, instead of being advanced by 
this inhuman act, became every day more ruinous ; and 
the abilities of Bedford were unable to prevent the French 
from returning under the obedience of their legitimate 
sovereign. The duke of Burgundy determined to unite 
liimself to the royal family of France, from which his own 
had descended ; and a congress was appointed at 
^o^- Arras, in which were adjusted the mutual preten- 
sions of Charles and Philip. Soon after this trans- 
action, the duke of Bedford expired, a prince of great 
abilities and many virtues, and whose memory is chiefly 
tarnished by the execution of the maid of Orlelns. After 
his death, the court of Henry was distracted by the rival 
j parties of the duke of Gloucester and the cardinal of 
I Winchester ; and it was seven months before the duke of 
I York, son to the earl of Cambridge, who had been execu- 



liEJS'UY Vli 133 

ted in the beginning of the last reign, was appointed sue 
cessor to the duke of Bedford. On his arrival in France, 
the new governor found the capital already lost. The Pa- 
risians were attached to the house of Burgundy ; and after 
the conclusion of the treaty of Arras, they returned to 
their allegiance under their native sovereign. Lord Wii- 
loughby, with an English garrison of fifteen hundred men, 
retired into the Bastile ; but his valour and skill only 
served to procure him a capitulation, by which he was 
allowed with his troops a safe retreat into Normandy. 

The cardinal of Winchester had always encouraged 
every proposal of accommodation with France, and had 
represented the utter impossibility of pushing farther the 
conquest in that kingdom ; but the duke of Gloucester, 
high-spirited and haughty, and educated in the lofty pre- 
tensions which the first success of his two brothers had 
rendered familiar to him, could not be induced to relin- 
quish all hopes of subduing France. However, the earl of 
Suffolk, who adhered to the cardinal's party, was des- 
patched to Tours to negotiate with the French mi- 
nisters. As it was found impossible to adjust the , \ ,,{ 
terms of a lasting peace, a truce for twenty- two 
months was concluded ; and Suffolk proceeded to the ex- 
ecution of another business, which seems to have been 
rather implied than expressed in the powers granted to him. 

As Henry advanced in years, his character became fully 
known* He was found to be of the most harmless, simple 
manners, but of the most slender capacity ; and hence it 
was easy to foresee that his reign would prove a perpetual 
minority. As he had now, however, reached the twenty- 
third year of his age, it was natural to think of choosing 
him a queen. The duke of Gloucester proposed a daugh- 
ter of the count of Armagnac, but the cardinal and his 
friends cast their eyes on Margaret of Anjou, daughter of 
Regnier, titular king of Sicily, Naples, and Jerusalem : a 
princess accomplished both in person and mind, of a mas- 
culine spirit, and an enterprising temper, which she had 
not been able to conceal even in the privacy of her father's 
family, the earl of Suffolk, in concert with his associates 
of the English council, made proposals of marriage to 
Margaret, which were accepted. Though Margaret 
brought no dowry with her, this nobleman ventured of 
himself, without any direct authority from the council 
12 



134 ;; ti HISToriY or EXtil.AI^D. 

but probably with the approbation of the cardinal and the 
ruling members, to enga*i;e, by a secret article, that the 
province of Maine, which was at that time in the hands of 
the English, should be ceded to Charles of Anjou. her 
uncle, who was prime minister and favourite of the French 
king, and who had already received from his master the 
grant of that province as his appanage. 

The treaty of marriage was ratified in England : Suffolk 
obtained first the title of marquis, then that of duke ; and 
even received the thanlcs of parliament for his services in 
concluding it. The princess immediately fell into close 
connexions with the cardinal and his party, who, fortified 
by her powerful patronage, resolved on the final ruin of the 
duke of Gloucester. 

The generous prince, ill-suited to court intrigues, but 
possessing in a high degree the favour of the public, had 
received from his rivals a cruel mortification, which he 
had hitherto borne without violating the public peace, but 
which it was impossible that a person of his spirit and hu- 
manity could ever forgive. His duchess, the daughter of 
ileginal lord Cobham, had been accused of the crime of 
witchcraft ; and it was pretended that there was found in 
her possession a waxen figure of the king, which she and 
her associates, sir Roger Bolingbroke, a priest, and one 
Marjery Jordan of Eye, melted in a magical manner be- 
fore a slow fire, with an intention of making Heniy's force 
and vigour waste away, by like insensible degrees. TJie 
accusation was well calculated to affect the weak and 
credulous mind of tlie king, and to gain belief in an igno- 
rant age ; and the duchess was brought to trial with her 
confederates. A charge of this ridiculous nature seems 
always to exempt the accusers from observing the rules of 
common sense in their evidence : the prisoners were pro- 
nounced guilty; the duchess was condemned to do public 
penance, and to suffer pei^petual imprisonment ; and the 
others were executed. As these violent proceedings weie 
ascribed solely to the malice of the duke's enemies, the 
people, contrary to their usual practice in such trials, ac- 
quitted the unhappy sufferers, and increased tlwir esteem 
and affection towards a prince who was thus exposed to 
mortal injuries. 

The sentiments of the public made the cardinal and his 
party sensible that it was necessary to destroy a man whom 



HENRY VI. 135 

they had so deeply injured. In order to effect their pur- 
pose, a parHament was summoned to meet, not at Lon- 
don, which was supposed to be too well affected to the 
duke, but at St. Edmondsbury. As soon as Gloucestei 
appeared, he was accused of treason, and, thrown 
into prison : he was soon after found dead in his -. ',^1 
bed ; and though it was pretended that his death 
was natural, and his body bore no marks of outward vio- 
lence, no one doubted but he had fallen a victim to the 
vengeance of his enemies. 

The cardinal of Winchester died six weeks after his 
nephew, whose murder was universally ascribed to him as 
well as to the duke of Suffolk, and which, it is said, g'ave 
him more remorse in his last moments, than could be 
naturally expected from a man hardened, during the 
course of a long life, in falsehood and in politics. What 
share the queen had in this guilt is uncertain : her usual 
activity and spirit made the people conclude, with some 
reason, that the duke's enemies durst not have ventured 
on such a deed without her privity. But there happened, 
soon after, an event of which she and her favourite, the 
duke of Suffolk, bore incontestibly the whole odium. , ^ 

The article of the marriage treaty, by which the pro- 
vince of Maine was to be ceded to Charles of Anjou, the 
queen's uncle, had been hitherto kept secret ; but as the 
court of France strenuously insisted on its performance, 
orders were now despatched, under Henry's hand, to Sir 
Francis Surienne, governor of Mans, to surrender that 
place. Surienne, questioning the authenticity of the order, 
refused to comply ; but a French army, under the count of 
Dunois, obliged him to surrender not only Mans, but all 
the other fortresses in that province. Surienne, at the 
head of his garrisons, retired into Normandy : but the 
duke of Somerset, who was governor of that province, 
refused to admit him ; and this adventurer marched into 
Brittany, and subsisted his troops by the ravages which 
he exercised. The duke of Brittany complained of this 
violence to the king of France, his liege lord ; and Charles 
remonstrated with Somerset, who replied, that the injury 
was done without his privity, and that he had no authority 
over Surienne. Charles refused to admit of this apology, 
and insisted that reparation should be made to the duke of 
Brittany for all the damages which he had sustained ; and, 
in order to render an accommodation absolutely imprac- 



136 HISTORir OF ENGLAND. 

ticable, he estimated the loss at no less a sum than one 
million six hundred thousand crowns. 

Sen-sible of the superiority which the present state of 
his affairs gave him over England, he was determined to 
take advantage of it; and, accordingly, Normandy was 

at once invaded by four powerful armies : the first 
1 44Q commanded by the king of France himself ; the 

second, by the duke of Brittany ; the third, by the 
duke of Alen^on ; and the fourth, by the count of Dunois. 
The conquest of Normandy was speedily finished by 
Charles. A like rapid success attended the French arms 
in Guienne ; and the English were expelled from a pro- 
vince which they had held for three centuries. 
"^ The palpable weakness of Henry the Sixth had encou- 
raged a pretender to the crown of England ; and the 
English were doomed to pay, though late, the penalty of 
their turbulence under Richard the Second, and of their 
levity in violating, without any necessity, the lineal succes- 
sion of their monarchs. All the males of the house of 
Mortimer were extinct ; but Anne, the sister of the last 
earl of Marche, having espoused the earl of Cambridge, 
beheaded in the reign of Henry V., had transmitted her 
latent, but not yet forgotten, claim to her son, Richard, 
duke of York. This prince, thus descended by his mother 
from Fhilippa, only daughter of the duke of Clarence, 
second son of Edward III., stood plainly in the order of 
succession before the king, who derived his descent from 
the duke of Lancaster, third son of that monarch ; and 
that claim could not, in many respects, have fallen into 
more dangerous hands than those of the duke of York. 
Richard was a man of valour and abilities, of a prudent 
conduct and mild disposition ; he had enjoyed an oppor- 
tunity of displaying these virtues in his government of 
France ; and though recalled by the intrigues and superior 
interest of the duke of Somerset, he had been sent to sup- 
press a rebellion in Ireland ; and had even been able to 
attach to his person and family the whole Irish nation, 
whom he was sent to subdue. In the right of his fatlier, 
he bore the rank of first prince of the blood ; and by this 
station he gave a lustre to his title derived from the family 
of Mortimer, which, however, had been eclipsed by the 
royal descent of the house of Lancaster. He possessed 
an immense fortune from the union of so manv succes- 



HENRY VI. 137 

sions, those of Cambridge and York on the one hand, 
with those of Mortimer on the other ; which last inheri- 
tance had been before augmented by a union of the 
estates of Clarence and Ulster, with the patrimonial pos- 
sessions of the family of Marche. The alliance too of 
Richard, by his marrying the daughter of Ralph Nevil, 
earl of Westmoreland, had widely extended his interest 
among the nobility, and had procured him many connec- 
tions in that formidable ordor. Among the rest, he was 
nearly allied to the earl of Warwick, commonly known 
from the subsequent events by the appellation of the King- 
maker. This nobleman had distinguished himself by his 
gallantry in the field, by the hospitality of his table, by 
the magnificence, and still more by the generosity of his 
expense, and by the spirited and bold manner which at- 
tended him in all his actions. The undesigning frankness 
and openness of his character rendered his conquest over 
men*s affections the more certain. No less than thirty 
thousand persons are said to have daily lived at his ex- 
pense in the difibrent manors and castles which he pos- 
sessed ; and he was the greatest, as well as the last, of 
those mighty barons, who formerly overawed the crown. 

The humours of the people, set afloat by a parliamen- 
tary impeachment, and by the fall of the duke of Suflblk, 
broke out in various commotions, which were soon sup- 
pressed ; but an insurrection in Kent was attended with 
more dangerous consequences. One John Cade, a native 
of Ireland, a man of low condition, who had been obliged 
to fly into France for crimes, observed, on his return to 
England, the discontents of the people, and assumed the 
name of John Mortimer. On the first mention of that 
popular name, the common people of Kent, to the num- 
ber of twenty thousand, flocked to Cade's standard ; and 
he inflamed their zeal by publishing complaints against 
the numerous abuses in government, and demanding a re- 
dress of grievances. Cade advanced with his follov/ers 
towards London, and encamped on Blackheath ; and 
transmitting to the court a plausible list of grievances, he 
promised that when these should be redressed, and lord 
Say the treasurer, and Cromer sheriff of Kent, should be 
punished for their malversations, he would immediately 
lay down his arms. The council, perceiving the reluc- 
tance of the people to fight against men so reasonable u. 
12* 



138 t HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

their pretensions, carried the king, for present safety, lo 
Kenilwonh ; and the city immediately opened its gates to 
Cade, who maintained, during some time, great order and 
discipUne among his followers. But being obliged, in 
order to gratify their malevolence against Say and Cro- 
mer, to put these men to death without a legal trial, he 
found that after the commission of this crime, he was no 
longer able to control their riotous disposition, and that 
all his orders were disobeyed. Proceeding to acts of plun- 
der and violence, the citizens became alarmed, and shut 
their gates against them ; and, being seconded by a de* 
tachment of soldiers sent them by lord Scales, governor of 
tlie tower, they repulsed the rebels with great slaughter. 
The Kentishmen were so discouraged by the blow, that 
upon receiving a general pardon from the primate, then 
chancellor, they retreated towards Rochester, and there 
dispersed. The pardon, however, was soon after annulled, 
as extorted by violence ; a price was set on Cade's head, 
who was killed by one Iden, a gentleman of Sussex ; and 
many of his followers w^ere punished with death. 

The court suspected that the duke of York had secretly 
instigated Cade to this attempt, to sound the dispositions 
of the people towards his title and family ; and fearing 
that he intended to return from Ireland with an armed 
force, the ruling party issued orders debarring him en- 
trance into England. The duke refuted his enemies by 
coming attended with only his ordinary retinue ; but find- 
ing himself an object of jealousy, he saw the impossibility 
of remaining a quiet subject, and the necessity of pro- 
ceeding forward in support of his claim. His partisans, 
therefore, were instructed to maintain his right by succes- 
sion, and by the established constitution of the kingdom ; 
and the arguments adduced by his adherents and those of 
the reigning family, divided and distracted the people. 
The noblemen of greatest influence espoused the part of 
the duke of York ; but the earl of Northumberland adher- 
ed to the present government ; and the earl of Westmore- 
land, though head of the family of Nevil, was prevailed on 
to support the cause of Henry. 

The public discontents were increased by the loss of 
the province of Gascony, which was subdued by the 
French ; and though the English might deem themselves 
happy in being freed from all continental possessionfi, 



HENRY vr. 139 

ihey expressed great dissatisfaction on the occasion, and 
threw all the blame on the ministry. While they were in 
this disposition, the queen's delivery of a son, who re- 
ceived the name of Edward, had a tendency to inflame 
the public mind, as it removed all hopes of the peaceable 
successio]! of the duke of York, who was otherwise, in 
the right of his fathei^ and by the laws enacted since the 
accession of the house of Lancaster, next heir to the crown. 
The duke, however, was incapable of violent councils ; 
and even when no visible obstacles lay between him and 
the throne, he was prevented by his own scruples from 
mounting it. Henry, always unfit to exercise the govern- 
ment, fell about this time into a distemper, which so far 
increased his natural imbecility, that it rendered him inca- 
pable of maintaining even the appearance of royalty. 
The queen and the council, destitute of this support, and 
finding themselves unable to resist the York party, were 
obhged to yield to the torrent. They sent to the tower 
the duke of Somerset, who had succeeded to Suffolk's 
influence in the ministry, and who had soon become 
equally the object of public animosity and hatred ; and they 
appointed Richard lieutenant of the kingdom, with powers 
to open and hold a session of parliament. That assembly 
also, taking into consideration the state of the kingdom, 
created him protector during pleasure. Yet the duke, in- 
stead of pushing them to make farther concessions, ap- 
peared somewhat timid and irresolute, even in receiving 
the power which was tendered to him. This moderation 
of Richard was certainly very unusual and very amiable ; 
yet it was attended with bad consequences in the present 
juncture, and, by giving time to the animosities of faction 
to rise and ferment, it proved the source of all those furi- 
ous wars and commotions which ensued. 

The enemies of the duke of York soon found it in their 
power to take advantage of his excessive caution. Hen- 
ry, being so far recovered from his distemper as to carry 
the appearance of exercising the royal power, was moved 
to resume his authority, to annul the protectorship of the 
duke, to release Somerset from the tower, and to commit 
the administration into the hands of that nobleman. Ri- 
chard, sensible of the dangers to which he might be ex- 
posed, if he submitted to the annulling of the parliamen- 
tary commission, levied an army ; but still without advan- 



140 HISTORY OP ENGLAND, 

cing any pretensions to the crown. He complained onlj 
of the king's ministers, and demanded a reformation of 
the government. A battle was fou2;ht at St. Al- 
^'akk ban's, in which the Yorkists, without suffering- any 
material loss, slew about five thousand of their 
enemies. The king himself fell into the hands of the duke 
of York, who treated him with great respect and tender- 
ness ; and he was only obliged, w^hich he regarded as no 
hardship, to commit the whole authority of the crown into 
the hands of his rival. This was the first blood spilt in 
that fatal quarrel between the houses of York and Lancas- 
ter, which lasted for thirty years, and which is computed 
to have cost the lives of eighty princes of the blood, and 
almost entirely annihilated the ancient nobility of England. 
An outward reconciliation was effected, by means of the 
archbishop of Canterbury, between the two parties ; but 
it was evident, that the contest for a crown could not thus 
be peaceably accommodated. One of the king's retinue 
insulted one of the earl of Warwick's, and their compa- 
nions on both sides took part in the quarrel ; a fierce com- 
bat ensued ; the earl, apprehending his life to be aimed at, 
fled to his government of Calais, w^hich gave him the com- 
mand of the only regular force maintained by England ; 
and both parties, in every county, openly made prepara- 
tions for deciding the contest by arms. 

The earl of Salisbury, marching to join the duke of 
York, was overtaken at Blore-heath, on the borders of 
Staffordshire, by lord Audley, who commanded much 
superior forces. A small rivulet ran between the two 
armies ; and when the van of the royal army had passed 
the brook, Sahsbury suddenly attacked them, and put 
them to the rout ; and obtaining a complete victory, he 
reached the general rendezvous of the Yorkists at Ludlow, 
To the same place, the earl of Warwick brought a choice 
body of veterans from Calais, on whom it was thought 
the fortune of the war would much depend ; but when the 
royal army approached, and a general action was every 
hour expected, sir Andrew Trollop, who commanded the 
veterans, deserted to the king in the night time, and the 
Yorkists were so dismayed at this instance of treachery, 
which made every man suspicious of his fellow, that they 
separated next day, without striking a stroke. The duke 
fled to Ireland ; the earl of Warwick, attended by many 



UENRY VI. ",41 

of the other leaders, escaped to Calais, where his great 
popularity among all orders of men soon drew to him par- 
tisans ; and the friends of the house of York, in England, 
kept themselves every where in readiness to rise on the 
first summons. _„^ 

After meeting with some success at sea, Warvvick land- i 
ed in Kent, with the earl of Salisbury, and the earl of i 
Marche, eldest son of the duke of York ; and being met i 
by the primate, by lord Cobham, and other persons of dis^ t 
tinction, he marched, amidst the acclamations of the peo- 
ple, to London. A battle was fought at Northampton, 
and was soon decided against the royalists, of whom the 
duke of Buckingham, the earl of Shrewsbury, the lords 
Beaumont and Egremont, and sir William Lucie, with 
many other persons of quality, were killed in the action 
or pursuit. Henry himself was again taken prisoner ; and, 
as the innocence and simplicity of his manners had pro- 
cured him the tender regard of the people, he was treated 
with abundant respect. 

A parliament was summoned in the king's name at 
Westminster, where the duke of York soon after appeared 
from Ireland. This prince stated to the house of peers his 
own claim to the crown, and exhorted them to do justice 
to the lineal successor. The lords remained in some sus- 
pense, but at length declared in favour of the duke of York. 
They determined, however, that Heniy should possess the 
dignity during the remainder of his life ; that the adminis- 
tration of the government should in the mean while remain 
with Richard ; and that he should be acknowledged the 
true and lawful heir of the monarchy. 

But Margaret, whose high spirit spurned at the com- 
pact, was not remiss in defending the rights of her family. 
After the battle of Northampton, she had fled with her in- 
fant son to the north, where her affability, insinuatioiif, and 
address, among the northern barons, raised her an army 
twenty thousand strong, with a celerity which was neither 
expected by her friends, nor apprehended by her enemies. 
The duke of York, informed of her appearance in the 
north, hastened thither with a body of five thousand men ; 
but on his arrival at Wakefield, finding himself so much 
outnumbered by the enemy, he threw himself into Sandal 
castle ; and was advised by the earl of Salisbury and other 
prudent counsellors, to remain in that fortress, till his son 



143 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

the earl of Marche, who was levying forces in the borders 
of Wales, could advance to his assistance. But the duke, 
who possessed personal bravery in an eminent degree, 
thought that he should be for ever disgraced, if, by taking 
shelter behind walls, he should for a moment resign the 
victory to a woman. He therefore descended into the 
plain, and offered battle to the enemy, which was instantly 
accepted. The great inequality of numbers was alone 
sufficient to decide the victory ; but the queen, by sending 
a detachment, who fell on the back of the duke's army, 
rendered her advantage still more certain and undisputed. 
The duke himself was killed in the action; and his head, 
by Margaret's orders, was fixed on the gates of York, with 
a paper crown, in derision of his pretended title. There 
fell near three thousand Yorkists in this battle : the duke 
himself was greatly and justly lamented by his own party. 
He perished in the fiftieth year of his age, and left three 
sons, Edward, George, and Richard, with three daugliters, 
Anne, Elizabeth, and Margaret. 

The queen, after this important victory, divided her ar- 
my. She sent the smaller division, under Jasper Tudor, 
earl of Pembroke, half brother to the king, against Ed- 
ward, the new duke of York. She herself marched with 
the larger division towards London, where the earl of 
Warwick had been left with the command of the Yorkists. 
Pembroke was defeated by Edward at Mortimer's Cross, 
in Herefordshire, with the loss of near four thousand men ; 
but Margaret compensated this defeat by a victoiy which 
she obtained over the earl of Warwick at St. Albans ; and 
the person of the king fell again into the hands of his 
own party. 

The queen, however, reaped no great advantage from 
this victory. Young Edward advanced upon her from 
the other side ; and collecting the remains of Wai-wick's 
army, he was soon in a condition of giving her battle with 
a superior force. Sensible of her danger, she found it 
necessary to retreat with her army to the north ; and Ed- 
ward entered the capital amidst the acclamations of the 
citizens. Instead of confining himself to the narrow limits 
to which his father had submitted, he determined to avail 
himself of his popularity, and to assume the name and 
dignity of king. His army was ordered to assemble in 
Si John's Fields; great numbers of people surrounde<J 



EDWARD iV. 143 

them ; an harangue was pronounced to this mixed multi- 
tude, setting forth the title of Edward, and inveighing 
ugainst the tyranny and usurpation of the rival family; 
and the people were then asked, whether they would 
accept of Edward, eldest son of the late duke of York, 
for their king 1 They expressed their assent by loud and 
joyful acclamations. A great number of bishops, lords, 
magistrates, and other persons of distinction, were 
next assembled at Baynard's castle, who ratified i]|f^| 
the popular election ; and the new king was on the i 

subsequent day proclaimed in liondon, by the title of Ed- I 
ward the Fourth. ^^ 

In this manner ended the reign of Henry VI. a monarch 
who, while in his cradle, had been proclaimed king both 
of France and England, and who began his life with the 
most splendid prospects that any prince in Europe had 
ever enjoyed. His weakness and his disputed title were 
the chief causes of the public calamities : but whether his 
queen, and his ministers, were not also guilty of some 
great abuses of power, it is not easy for us at this distance 
of time to determine. The scaffold, as Well as the field, 
incessantly streamed with the noblest blood of England, 
spilt in the quarrel between the two contending families, 
whose animosity was now become implacable. The par- 
tisans of the house of Lancaster chose the red rose as 
their mark of distinction ; those of York were denomi- 
nated from the white ; and these civil wars were thus 
known, over Europe, by the name of the quarrel between 
the two roses. 

Queen Margaret assembled an army in Yorkshire ; and 
the king and the earl of Warwick hastened with forty 
thousand men to check her progress. In a skirmish for 
the passage of Ferrybridge over the river Ayre, the York- 
ists were chased back with great slaughter. The earl of 
Warwick, dreading the consequences of this disaster, at a 
time when a decisive action was every hour expected, 
immediately ordered his horse to be brought him, which 
he stabbed before the whole army ; and kissing the hilt of 
his sword, swore that he was determined to share the fate 
of the meane£»t soldier. And, to show the greater security, 
a proclamation was at the same time issued, giving to 
every one full liberty to retire ; but menacing the severest 



144 HJSTORS OF ENliLAJNlT* 

punishment to those who should discover any symptoms (A 
cowardice in the ensuing battle. 

The hostile armies met at Touton ; and a fierce and 
bloody battle ensued, which ended in a total victory on 
the side of the Yorkists. Edward issued orders to give 
no quarter. The routed army was pursued to Tadcaster 
with great bloodshed and confusion ; and above thirty-six 
thousand men are computed to have fallen in the battle 
and pursuit : among these were the earl of Westmoreland^ 
and his brother, sir John Nevil, the earl of Northumber- 
land, the lords Dacres and Welles, and sir Andrew Trol- 
lop. The earl of Devonshire, who Avas now engaged in 
Henry's party, was brought a prisoner to Edward ; and 
was, soon after, beheaded by martial law at York* Hen - 
ry and Margaret had remained at York during the action ; 
but learning the defeat of their army^ and being sensible 
that no place in England could now afford them shelter, 
they fled with great precipitation into Scotland ; and on 
Margaret's offering to the Scottish council to deliver to 
them immediately the important fortress of Berwick, and 
to contract her son in marriage with a sister of king James, 
the Scots promised the assistance of their arms to reinstate 
her family upon the throne. 

But as the danger from that quarter seemed not very 
urgent to Edward, he did not pursue the fugitive king and 
queen into their retreat; but returned to London, where 
a parliament was summoned for settling the government- 
That assembly no longer hesitated between the two fami- 
lies ; they recognised the title of Edward, and passed an 
act of attainder against Henry and Margaret, against their 
infant son Edward, and their principal adherents. 

However, Lewis the eleventh of France, a prince of an 
intriguing and politic genius, sent a body of two thousand 
men at arms to the assistance of Heniy. These enabled 
Margaret to take the field ; but though reinforced by a 
numerous train of adventurers from Scotland, and by 
many partisans of the family of Lancaster, she received 
a check at Hedgley-moor from lord Montague, brother to 
the earl of Warwick, who was so encouraged with this 
success, that while a numerous reinforcement was on 
then- march to join him by orders from Edward, he ven- 
tured with his own troops alone to attack the Lancas- 
trians at Hexham, and obtained a complete victory over 



EDWARD IV. -^ : 145 

ihem. All those who were spared in the field suffered on 
the scaffold ; and the utter extermination of their adversa- 
ries was now become the plain object of the York party. 

The fate of the unfortunate rojal family, after this de- 
feat, was singular. Margaret, fleeing with lier son into a 
forest, was beset, during the darkness of the night, by 
robbers, who despoiled her of her rings and jewels, and 
treated her with the utmost indignity. The partition of 
this rich booty raised a quarrel among them ; and while 
their attention was thus engaged, she took an opportunity 
of plunging with her son into the depths of the forest. 
While in this wretched condition, she saw a robber ap- 
proach with his naked sword ; and finding that she had 
no means of escape, she suddenly advanced towards him ; 
and presenting to him the young prince, called out to him, 
" here, my friend, I commit to your care the safety of 
your king's son." The man, whose humanity and gene- 
rous spirit had been obscured, not entirely lost, by his 
vicious course of life, was charmed with the confidence 
reposed in him, and vowed not only to abstain from all 
injury against the princess, but to devote himself entirely 
to her service. By his means she dwelt some time con- 
cealed in the forest, and was at last conducted to the sea 
coast, whence she made her escape into Flanders. She 
passed thence to her father's court, where she lived seve- 
ral years in privacy and retirement. Her husband was 
not so fortunate nor so dexterous in finding the means of 
escape. Some of his friends took him under their protec- 
tion, and conveyed him into Lancashire, where he remain- 
ed concealed during a year ; but he was at last de- 
tected, delivered up to Edward, and thrown into t\^i^ 
the tower. The preservation of his life was owing '^ 
less to the generosity of his enemies than to the contempt 
which they had entertained of his courage and under- 
standing. .^ 

The imprisonment of Henry, the expulsion of Margaret, 
md the execution and confiscation of all the most eminent 
Lancastrians, seemed to give full security to Edward's 
government; but the amorous temper of the prince led 
him into an act which proved fatal to his repose, and to 
the stability of his throne. Elizabeth Grey, daughter of 
the duchess of Bedford, by her second marriage with sir 
Richard Woodville. and widow of sir John Grey, of Gro- 
13 



146 HISTORY OF ENGLAND 

by, who had been slain in the second battle of St. Albans, 
fighting on the side of Lancaster, and whose estate had 
been confiscated, seized the opportunity, when the king 
was on a visit to the duchess of Bedford, of throwing her- 
self at his feet, and entreating his pity for her impoverish- 
ed and distressed children. The sight of so much beauty 
in aftliction strongly affected Edward ; and he was redu- 
ced, in his turn, to the posture of a supplicant at the feet of 
Elizabeth. But the lady was either averse to dishonoura- 
ble love, or inflamed with ambition ; and the caresses and 
importunities of the young and amiable Edward proved 
fruitless against her rigid and inflexible virtue. His pas- 
sion, increased by opposition, carried him beyond all 
bounds ; and he offered to share with her his throne, as 
well as his heart. The marriage was privately celebrated 
at Grafton ; and the secret was carefully kept for some 
time, from motives of policy, which at that time rendered 
this proceeding highly dangerous and imprudent. 

The king had a little before cast his eye on Bona of 
Savoy, sister of the queen of France, who, he hoped, 
would, by her marriage, ensure him the friendship of that 
power, which was alone both able and inclined to give 
support and assistance to his rival. To render the nego- 
tiation more successful, the earl of Warwick had been 
despatched to Paris, where the princess then resided. 
This nobleman had demanded Bona in marriage for the 
king ; his proposals had been accepted ; and nothing re- 
mained but the ratification of the tenns agreed on, and tJie 
bringing over the princess to England. But when the 
secret of Edward's marriage broke out, the haughty earl, 
deeming himself affronted, returned to England, inflamed 
with rage and indignation ; and an extensive and dange- 
rous combination was insensibly formed against Edward 
and his ministry. A rebellion arose in Lincolnshire, and 
was headed by sir Robert Welles, son to the lord of that 
name ; but the king defeated the army of the rebels, took 
their leader prisoner, and ordered him immediately to 

Edward had entertained so little jealousy of the earl of 
Warwick or duke of Clarence, the king's second brother, 
who had married the earl's eldest daughter, that he sent 
them with commissions of array to levy forces against the 
rebels ; but these malcontents, as soon as they left the 



EDWARD IV. 147 

e.ourt, raised troops in their own name, issued declarations 
against the government, and complained of grievances, 
oppressions, and bad ministers. The unexpected defeat 
of Welles disconcerted all their measure-s ; and they were 
obliged to disband their army, and to fly into Devonshire, 
whence they embarked and made sail towards Calais. 

The king of France, jealous of the alliance entered into 
between Edward and the duke of Burgundy, received 
Warwick with the greatest demonstrations of regard, and 
hoped to make him his instrument for re-establishing the 
house of Lancaster. Margaret being sent for from Angers, 
where she then resided, an agreement dictated by mutual 
mterest was soon concluded between them, Edward, 
nowever, foresaw that it would be easy to dissolve an alli- 
ance composed of such discordant materials. He em- 
ployed a lady in the train of the duchess of Clarence, to 
represent to the duke that he had unwarily become the 
instrument of Warwick's vengeance, and had formed a 
connection with the murderers of his father, and the im- 
placable enemies of his family, Clarence, struck with the 
force of these arguments, on a promise of forgiveness, se- 
cretly engaged to abandon the Lancastrian party. War- 
wick also was secretly carrying on a correspondence of the 
same nature with his brother, the marquis of Montague, 
who was entirely trusted by Edward ; and like motives 
produced a like resolution in that nobleman. Warwick 
availed himself of a storm to cross the channel, and, with 
a small body of French troops, landed at Dartmouth, ac^ 
companied by the duke of Clarence, and the earls of 
Oxford and Pembroke. 

Edward, though brave and active, had little foresight. 
He had made no preparations for this event ; and 
he had even said, that he wished for nothing more i^i^rt 
than to see Warwick on English ground. How- 
ever, the prodigious popularity of that nobleman, the zeal 
of the Lancastrian party, and the spirit of discontent with 
which many were infected, drew such multitudes to his 
standard, that in a few days his army amounted to sixty 
thousand men, and was continually increasing. Edward, 
who had been employed in suppressing an insurrection 
in the north, now hastened southward to encounter him ; 
and the two armies approached each other near Notting- 
ham. The rapidity of Wanvick's progress had incapaci- 



148 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

tated the diike of Clarence from executing Ids plan of 
treachery ; but the marquis of Montague, having commu- 
nicated the design to his adherents, took to arms in the 
night time, and hastened with loud acclamations to Ed- 
ward's quarters. The king had just time to get on horse- 
back, and to huiTy withi a small retinue to Lynn, in Nor- 
folk, where finding some ships ready, he instantly em- 
barked. Thus, the earl of Warwick, in no longer space 
than eleven days after his first landing, was left entire 
master of the kingdom. 

Immediately after Edward^s flight, Warwick hastened 
to London ; and delivering Henry from his confinement in 
the tower, he proclaimed him king with great solemnity ; 
and every thing now promised a full settlement of the 
English crown in the family of Lancaster. However, Ed- 
ward being assisted by the duke of Burgundy, his brother- 
in-law, though in a covert way, he set sail for England ; 
and, impatient to take vengeance on his enemies, he made 
an attempt to land with his forces, which did not exceed 
two thousand men, on the coast of Norfolk ; but being 
there repulsed, he sailed northward, and disembarked at 
Ravenspur, in Yorkshire. Finding that the new magis- 
trates, who had been appointed by the earl of Warwick, 
kept the people every where from joining him, he pre- 
tended, and even made oath, that he came not to chal- 
lenge the crown, but only the inheritance of the house of 
York, which of right belonged to him ; and that he did 
not intend to disturb the peace of the kingdom. His par- 
tisans every moment flocked to his standard ; he was ad- 
mitted into the city of York ; and he was soon in such a 
situation as gave him hopes of succeeding in all his for- 
mer claims and pretensions. Warwick assembled an ar- 
my at Leicester, with an intention of meeting, and of giv- 
ing battle to the enemy ; but Edward, by taking another 
road, passed him unmolested, and presented himself be- 
fore the gates of London. His numerous friends facili- 
tated his admission into the capital ; and his entrance irito 
London made him master not only of that rich and pow- 
erful city, but also of the person of Henry, who, destined 
to be the perpetual sport of fortune, again fell into the 
hands of his enemies. 

The king soon found himself in a condition to face the 
carl of Warwick, who, being reinforced by his son-in-law 



fiDWARD IV. ^ V ' 149 

ihe duke of Clarence, and his brother, the marquis of Mon- 
tague, took post at Barnet, in the vicinity of London. 
His brother Montague seems to have remained attached 
to the interests of his family ; but his son-in-law, though 
bound to him by every tie of honour and gratitude, re- 
solved to fulfil the secret engagements which he had for- 
merly taken with his brother, and deserted to the king in 
the night time, carrying over a body of twelve thousand 
men along with him. Warwick was now too far advanced 
to retreat ; and as he rejected with disdain all terms of 
accommodation offered him by Edward and Clarence, he 
was obliged to hazard a general engagement. The 
battle was fought with obstinacy on both sides; ^\^j 
and the victory remained long uadecided between 
them. But an accident threw the balance on the side of 
the Yoridsts. Warwick engaged that day on foot, and 
was slain in the thickest of the engagement ; his brother 
underwent the same fate ; and as Edward had issued or- 
ders not to give any quarter, a great and undistinguished 
slaughter was made in the pursuit. 

The same day on which this decisive battle was fought, 
queen Margaret and her son, now about eighteen years 
of age, and a young prince of great hopes, landed at 
Weymouth, supported by a small body of French forces. 
She advanced through the counties of Devon, Somerset, 
and Gloucester, increasing her army on each day's march ; 
but was at last overtaken by the rapid and expeditious 
Edward at Tewkesbury, on the banks of the Severn. The 
Lancastrians were here totally defeated; and the army 
was entirely dispersed. 

Queen Margaret and her son were taken prisoners, and 
brought to the king, who asked the prince, after an insult- 
ing manner, how he dared to invade his dominions 1 The 
young prince, more mindful of his high birth than of his 
present fortune, replied, that he came thither to claim his 
just inheritance. The ungenerous Edward, insensible to 
pity, struck him on the face with his guantlet ; and the 
dukes of Clarence and Gloucester, lord Hastings, and sir 
Thomas Gray, taking the blow as a signal for further vio- 
lence, hurried the prince into the next apartment, and 
there despatched him with their daggers. Margaret was 
thrown into the Tower : king Henry died in that confine- 
ment a few days after the battle of Tewkesbury ; but whe- 
13* 



150 j U u HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

ther he died a natural or a violent death is uncertain It 
is pretended, and was generally believed, that the duke of 
Gloucester killed him with his own hands ; but the uni- 
versal odium which that prince has incurred, inclined, 

I perhaps, the nation to aggravate his crimes without any 

Insufficient authority. 

All the hopes of the house of Lancaster seemed now 
utterly extinguished ; and Edward was firmly established 
on the throne of England. This prince was active and in- 
trepid in adversity, but unable to resist the allurements of 
prosperity. He now devoted himself to pleasure and 
amusement ; but he was roused from his lethargy by the 
prospect of foreign conquests. He formed a league with 
the duke of Burgundy to invade France ; and for this 
purpose, the parliament voted him a tenth of rents, or two 
shillings in the pound, which produced only £31,460; 
and they added to this supply a whole fifteenth, and three 
quarters of another ; but as the king deemed these sums 
still unequal to the undertaking, he attempted to levy 
money by way of benevolence ; a kind of exaction which, 
except during the reigns of Henry the Third and Richard 
the Second, had not been much practised in former times, 
and whicbr though the consent of the parties were pre- 
tended t(:@)e gained, could not be deemed entirely vo 
luntary. 

The king passed over to Calais with an army of fifteen 
hundred men at arms, and fifteen thousand archers ; 
,^»,^I but all his hopes of conquest were damped, when 
he found that the constable St. Pol, who had se- 
cretly promised to join him, did not receive him into the 
towns of which he was master, nor the duke of Burgundy 
bring him the smallest assistance* This circumstance 
gave great disgust to the king, and inclined him to hearken 
to the pacific overtures of Lewis, who consented to pay 
Edward immediately seventy-five thousand crowns, on 
condition that he should withdraw his army from France, 
and promised to pay him fifty thousand crowns a year 
during their joint lives. It was farther stipulated, that the 
dauphin, when of age, should marry Edward's eldest daugh- 
ter. The articles of this treaty were ratified in a personal 
interview which the two monarchs had at Pacquigni, near 
Amiens. This treaty was little honourable to either of 
these monarchs ; it discovered the imprudence of Edward, 



KB WARD IV. / 4 , 151 

and the want of dignity in Lewis, who, rather than hazard 
a battle, agreed to subject his kingdom to a tribute. The 
most honourable part of it was the stipulation for the liberty 
of queen Margaret, who, though after the death of her hus- 
band and son, she could no longer be formidable to 
government, was still detained in custody by Edward. 
Lewis paid fifty thousand crowns for her ransom ; and 
that princess, who had been so active on the stage of the 
world, and who had experienced such a variety of fortune, 
passed the remainder of her days in tranquility and pri- 
vacy, till the year 1482, when she died. ,_v 

Edward abandoned himself entirely to indolence and \ 
pleasure, which Were now become his ruling passions ; but \ 
an act of tyranny, of which he was guilty in his own fami- ■ 
ly, has met with general and deserved censure. The duke 
of Clarence, after all his services in deserting Warwick, 
had never been able to regain the king's friendship. He 
was also an object of displeasure to the queen, as well as 
to his brother, the duke of Gloucester, a prince of the deep- 
est policy, and the most unrelenting ambition. A combi- 
nation between these potent adversaries being secretly 
formed against Clarence, it was determined to begin by at- 
tacking his friends, of whom several were put t6 death for 
the most trivial offences. Clarence, instead of securing 
his own life by silence and reserve, was open and loud in 
exclaiming against the iniquity of their persecutors. The 
king highly offended with his freedom, or using that pre- 
tence against him, committed him to the tower, summoned 
a parliament, and tiied him for his life before the house of 
peers, on charges the most frivolous and futile. A sen- 
tence of condemnation, hovrever, was a necessary conse- 
quence in those times, of any prosecution by the court or 
the prevailing party ; and the duke of Clarence was pro- 
nounced guilty by the peers. The house of commons were 
no less slavish and unjust : they both petitioned for the ex- 
ecution of the duke, and afterwards passed a bill of attain- 
der against him. The only favour which the king granted 
his brother, after his condemnation, was to leave him the 
choice of his death ; and he was privately drowned in a 
butt of malmsey in the tower; a whimsical choice, which 
implies that he had an extraordinary passion for that liquor. 

All the energies of Edward's reign seem to have termi- 
nated with the civil wars : his spirit afterwards sunk into 



153 I Is n HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

?(.- 
indolence and pleasure* Whilst, however, he was making 
preparations for a war against France, he was seized with 
a distemper of which he died in the forty-second year of 
his age, and the twenty-lhird of his reign. Besides five 
daughters, Edward left two sons ; Edward, princt of Wale?, 
his successor, then in his thirteenth year, and Richard, 
duke of York, in his ninth. 
;r^^" The king, on his death-bed, had entrusted the regency 
to his brother, the duke of Gloucester, then absent in the 
north ; and he recommended to the rival nobles 
i'aqA peace and unanimity during the tender years of his 
son. But he had no sooner expired, than the jea- 
lousies of the parties broke out ; and each of them endea- 
voured to obtain the favour of the duke of Gloucester. 

This prince, whose unbounded ambition led him to car- 
ry his view s to the possession of the crown itself, prevailed 
on the queen, by profession of zeal and attachment, to 
countermand the order which she had issued to her brother, 
the earl of Rivers, to levy a body of forces, and to direct 
him to brmg up the young king from Ludlow to London, 
with only his ordinary retinue. In the mean time, the 
duke of Gloucester set out from York, attended by a nu- 
merous train of the northern gentry. When he reached 
Northampton, he was joined by the duke of Buckingham, 
who was also attended by a splendid retinue ; and after 
being met by the earl of Rivers, who had sent his pupil 
forward to Stony Stratford, they all proceeded on the road 
the next day to the king ; but as they entered Stony Strat- 
ford, the earl of Rivers was arrested by orders from the 
duke of Gloucester, together with sir Richard Grey, one 
of the queen's sons, and instantly conducted to Pomfret. 

On intelligence of her brother's imprisonment, the queen 
fled into the sanctuary of Westminster, attended by the 
marquis of Dorset ; and she carried thither the five prin- 
cesses, together with the duke of York. But Gloucester, 
anxious to have the duke of York also in his power, em- 
ployed the archbishops of Canterbury and York, who, 
duped by the villain's artifice and dissimulation, prevailed 
on the queen to deliver up the prince, that he might be 
present at the coronation of his brother. 

The council, without waiting for the consent of parlia- 
ment, had already invested the duke of Gloucester with 
the high dignity of protector ; and having so far succeeded 




Edward the Fourth and Elizabeth Woodville. 




Murder of the Princes in the Tower, 



EDWARD IV. >/ /-, 153 

m his views, he no longer hesitated in removing the other 
obstructions which lay between him and the throne. The 
death of the earl of Rivers, and of the otl|pr prisoners de- 
tained in Pomfret, was first determined ; and he easily 
obtained the consent of the duke of Buckingham, as well 
as of lord Hastings, to this violent and sangainary mea- 
sure, which was promptly executed. 

The protector then assailed the fidelity of Buckingham, 
by specious arguments, and offers of great private advan- 
tages, and obtained from him a promise of supporting him 
in all his enterprises. Knowing the importance of gain- 
ing lord Hastings, he sounded him at a distance ; but 
finding him impregnable in his allegiance and fidelity to 
the children of Edward, he determined on his destruction. 
Having summoned a council in the tower, whither that 
nobleman, suspecting no design against him, repaired 
without hesitation, the protector asked them, what pun- 
ishment those deserved that had plotted against his life, 
who was so nearly related to the king, and was entrusted 
with the administration of government 1 Hastings replied, 
that they merited the punishment of traitors. " TJiese 
traitors," cried the protector, " are the sorcerers, my bro- 
ther's wife, and Jane Shore, his mistress, with others, 
their associates : see to what a condition they have redu- 
ced me, by their incantations and witchcraft;" upon which 
he laid bare his arm, all shrivelled and decayed. The 
counsellors, who knew that this infirmity had attended him 
from his birth, looked on each other with amazement ; 
and above all, lord Hastings, who, as he had since Ed-, 
ward's death engaged in an intrigue with Jane Shore, 
was naturally anxious concerning the issue of these extra- 
ordinary proceedings. J^ Certainly, my lord," said he, " if 
they be guilty of these crimes, they deserve the severest 
punishment." " And do you reply to me," exclaimed the 
protector, " with your ifs and your ands ? You are the 
chief abettor of that witch Shore ; you are yourself a trai- 
tor ; and I swear by St. Paul, that I will not dine before 
your head be brought me." He struck the table with his 
hand : armed men rushed in at the signal : the counsellors 
were thrown into the utmost consternation; and Hastings 
being seized, was hurried away, and instantly beheaded 
on a timber log, which lay in the court of the tower. 

After the murder of Hastings, the protector no longei 



154 \ tr HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

made a- secret of his intention to usurp the crown. A 
report was industriously circulated, that Edward, before 
espousing the lady Elizabeth Grey, had been privately 
married to the lady Eleanor Talbot, and that consequently 
the offspring of the last marriage were illegitimate. In an 
assembly of the citizens, convoked for the purpose, the 
duke of Buckingham harangued the people on the protec- 
tor's title to the crown ; when, after several useless efforts, 
some of the meanest apprentices raised a feeble cry of 
" God save king Richard !" This was deemed sufficient ; 
and the crown was formally tendered to Richard, who pre- 
tended to refuse it, but was at length prevailed on to ac- 
cept the offer. This ridiculous farce was soon after fol- 
lowed by a scene truly tragical : the murder of the two 
young princes, who were smothered by hired ruffians in 
the tower, and whose bodies were buried at the foot of the 
stairs, deep in the ground, under a heap of stones.* 



CHAP. IX. 

The reigiis of Richard III. and Henry VII. 

The first acts of Richard were to bestow rewards on 
those who had assisted him in usurping the crown ; but 
the persin who, from the greatness of his services, was 
best entitled to favours under the new government, was 
the duke of Buckingham ; and Richard seemed deter- 
mined to spare no pains or bounty in securing him to his 
interests. That nobleman was invested with the office of 
constable, and received a grant of the forfeited estate of 
Bohun, earl of Hereford. It was, however, impossible 
that friendship could long remain inviolate between two 
men of such corrupt minds as Richard and the duke of 
Buckingham. Certain it is, that the duke, soon after 
Richard's accession, began to form a conspiracy against 
the government. 

By the exhortations of Morton, bishop of Ely, a zealous 
Lancastrian, the duke cast his eye toward the young earl 
of Richmond, as the only person capable of opposing an 

* In the reign of Charles II. the bones of two persons were found 
in the place above mentioned, which exactly corresponded by their 
bize to the ages of Edward V. and his brother ; and being considered 
as the undoubted remains of these princes, they were deposited in 
Westminster Abbey, under a marble tomb. 



RICHARD III. ) ; 155 

usurper, whose murder of the young princes had rendered 
him the object of general detestation. Henry, earl of 
Richmond, was at this time detained in a kind of honour- 
able custody by the duke of Brittany ; and his descent, 
which seemed to give him some pretensions to the crown, 
had been for some time a great object of jealousy. He 
was descended from John of Gaunt, and was nearly allied 
to Henry VI. 

As all the descendants of the house of York were now 
either women or minors, it was suggested by Morton, that 
the only means of overturning the present usurpation was 
to unite the opposite factions, by contracting a marriage 
between the earl of Richmond and the princess Elizabeth, 
eldest daughter of Edward IV. ; and the queen dowager, 
finding in this pre posal the probable means of revenge for 
the murder of her brother and her three sons, gave her 
approbation to the project. But this conspiracy could not 
escape the jealous and vigilant eye of Richard ; he imme- 
diately levied troops, and summoning Buckingham to ap- 
pear at court, that nobleman replied only by taking arms 
in Wales. At that very time, however, there happened to 
fall such heavy rains, so incessant and continued, as ex- 
ceeded any known in the memoiy of man ; and the Severn, 
with the other rivers in that neighbourhood, swelled to a 
height which rendered them impassable, and prevented 
Buckingham from marching into the heart of England to 
join his associates. The Welshmen, partly moved by su- 
perstition at this extraordinary event, partly distressed by 
famine in their camp, fell off from him ; and Buckino- 
ham, finding himself deserted by his followers, put on a 
disguise, and took shelter in the house of Bannister, an 
old servant of his family. But being detected in his re- 
treat, he was brought to the king at Salisbury, and was 
instantly executed. 

The king, fortified by this unsuccessful attempt to de- 
throne him, ventured at last to* summon a parlia- 
ment, in which his right to the crown was acknow- ^'aqI 
ledged ; and his only son Edward, then a youth of ^^^^ 
twelve years of age, was created prince of Wales. To 
gain the confidence of the Yorkists, he paid court to the 
queen dowager, who ventured to leave her sanctuary, and 
to put herself and her daughters into the hands of the ty- 
rant. But he soon carried farther his views for the estab 



15C HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

lishment of his throne. He had married Anne, the second 
daughter of the earl of Warwick, and widow of Edward, 
prince of Wales, whom Richard himself had murdered ; 
but this princess having borne him but one son, who died 
about this time, he considered her as an invincible obsta- 
cle to the settlement of his fortune, and he was believed to 
have carried her off by poison ; a crime which the usual 
tenor of his conduct made it reasonable to suspect. He 
now thought it in his power to remove the chief perils 
which threatened his government. The earl of Richmond, 
he knew, could never be formidable but from his projected 
marriage with the princess Elizabeth, the true heir of the 
crown ; and he therefore intended, by means of a papal 
dispensation, to espouse, himself, this princess, and thus 
to unite in his own family their contending titles. The 
queen dowager, eager to recover her lost authority, neither 
scrupled this alliance, nor felt any honor at marrying her 
daughter to the murderer of her three sons and of hei 
brother. She even joined so far her interests with those 
of the usurper, that she wrote to all her partisans, and 
among the rest, to her son the marquis of Dorset, desiring 
them to withdraw from the earl of Richmond ; an injury 
which the earl could never afterwards forgive. The court 
of Rome was applied to for a dispensation ; and Richard 
thought that he could easily defend himself during the* 
interval till it arrived, when he had the prospect of a full 
and secure settlement. 

But the crimes of Richard were so shocking to huma- 
nity, that every person of probity and honour was earnest 
to prevent the sceptre from being any longer polluted by 
his bloody and faithless hand. All the exiles flocked to 
the earl of Richmond, in Brittany, who, dreading treache- 
ry, made his escape to the court of France. The minis- 
ters of Charles VIII. gave him assistance and protection ; 
and he sailed from Harfleur, in Normandy, with a small 
army of about two thousand*men, and landed without op- 
position at Milford-haven, in Wales. 

But the danger to which Richard was chiefly exposed, 
proceeded not so much from the zeal of his open enemies, 
as from the infidelity of his pretended friends. Except 
the duke of Norfolk, scarcely any nobleman was attached 
to his cause ; but the persons of whom he entertained the 
greatest suspicion, were lord Stanley* and his brother, sir 



RICHARD lit. 157 

William. When he employed lord Stanley to levy rorces, 
he still retained his eldest son, lord Strange, as a pledge 
for his fidelity ; and that nobleman was, on this account, 
obliged to employ great caution and reserve in his proceed- 
ings. He raised a powerful body of his friends and re- 
tainers in Cheshire and Lancashire, but without openly 
declaring himself; and though Henry had received secret 
assurances of his friendly intentions, the armies on both 
sides knew not what to infer from his equivocal behaviour. 

The two rivals at last approached each other at Bos- 
worth, near Leicester ; Henry, at the head of six thousand 
men, Richard with an army of above double that number. 
Stanley, who commanded above seven thousand men, took 
care to post himself at Atherstone, not far from the hostile 
camps ; and he made such a disposition as enabled him on 
occasion to join either party. Soon after the battle began, 
lord Stanley, whose conduct in this whole affair discovers 
great precaution and abilities, appeared in the field, and de- 
clared for the earl of Richmond. The intrepid tyrant, 
sensible of his desperate situation, cast his eye around the 
field, and descrying his rival at no great distance, he drove 
against him with fury, in hopes that either Henry's death 
or his own would decide the victory between them. He 
killed with his own hands sir William Bradon, standard- 
bearer to the earl ; he dismounted sir John Cheyney ; he 
was now within reach of Richmond^, himself, who declined 
not the combat ; when sir William Stanley, break- 
ing in with his troops, surrounded Richard, who t\^^ 
fighting bravely, to the last moment, was over- 
whelmed by numbers, and perished by a fate too mild and 
honourable for his multiplied and detestable enormities. 
His men every where sought for safety by flight. 

There fell in this battle about four thousand of the van- 
quished ; and among these the duke of Norfolk, lord Fer- 
rars of Chartley, and several other persons of high rank. 
The loss was inconsiderable on the side of the victors. 
The body of Richard was found in the field covered with 
dead enemies, and all besmeared with blood ; it was thrown 
carelessly across a horse, carried to Leicester amidst the 
shouts of the insulting spectators, and interred in the 
Grey-Friars church of that place. All historians agree, 
that Richard was ready to commit the moet horrid crimes 
which appeared necessary for his purposes ; and it is cer- 
14 



158 1 (y^ t ItlSTORY OF ENGLAND. 

tain, that all his courage and capacity j qualities in which 
he really seems not to have been deficient, would never 
have made compensation to the people for the danger of 
the precedent, and for the contagious example of vice and 
murder, exalted upon the throne. This prince was of a 
small stature, hump^-backed, and had a harsh, disagreeable 
countenance ; so that his body was in every particuhar no 
less deformed than his mind. 

The victory at Bosworth was entirely decisive ; and the 
earl of Richmond was immediately saluted with acclama- 
tions of " Long live Henry the Seventh !" He accepted 
the title without hesitation : and asserting his claim to the 
throne as heir to the house of Lancaster, he determined 
never to allow it to be discussed. Though bound by 
honour as well as by interest to complete his alliance 
with the princess Elizabeth, yet he resolved to postpone 
the nuptials till after the ceremony of his coronation, lest 
a preceding marriage with the princess should imply a 
participation of sovereignty in her, and raise doubts of 
his own title by the house of Lancaster. In order to 
heighten the splendour of the coronation, he bestowed tlie 
rank of knight-banneret on twelve persons ; and he con- 
ferred peerage on three. Jasper, earl of Pembroke, his 
uncle, was created duke of Bedford ; Thomas, lord Stanley, 
his father-in-law, earl of Derby ; and Edward Courtney, 
earl of Devonshire. At the coronation, likewise, there 
appeared a new institution, which the king had established 
for security as well as pomp, a band of fifty archers, who 
were termed yeomen of the guard. But lest the people 
should take umbrage at this unusual symptom of jealous;^ 
in the prince, as if it implied a personal diffidence of his 
subjects, he declared the institution to be perpetual. The 
parliament assembled at Westminster, and proceeded to 
settle the entail of the crown. No mention was made of 
the princess Elizabeth : it v^as voted, " that the inheritance 
of the crown should rest, r^lbin, and abide in the king;'* 
and " tliat the succession should be secured to the heirs 
of his body ;" but Henry pretended not, in case of their 
failure, to exclude the house of York, or give the prefe- 
rence to that of Lancaster. 

The parliament had petitioned to the king to espouse 
the princess Elizabeth, under the pretence of their desire 
to have heirs of his body ; and he now thought in earnest 



HENRY VII. 159 

of satisfying the minds of his people in that particular. 
His marriage was celebrated at London, and that with 
greater appearance of universal joy than either his first 
entry or his coronation. Henry remarked with much dis- 
pleasure this general favour borne to the house of York. 
The suspicions which arose from it not only disturbed his 
tranquility during his whole reign, but bred disgust to- 
wards his consort herself, and poisoned all his domestic 
enjoyments. Though virtuous, amiable, and obsequious 
to the last degree, she never met with a proper return of 
affection, or even of complaisance, from her husband ; 
and the malignant ideas of faction still in his sullen mind, 
prevailed over all the sentiments of conjugal endearment. 
The king now resolved to make a progress into the 
north, where the friends of the house of York, and even 
the partisans of Richard, were numerous, in hopes of 
curing by his presence and conversation the prejudices of 
the malcontents. When he arrived at Nottingham, he 
heard that viscount Lovel, with sir Humphrey Stafford, 
and Thomas, his brother, had secretly withdrawn them- 
selves from their sanctuary at Colchester ; but this news 
appeared not to him of such importance as to stop his jour- 
ney ; and he proceeded forward to York. He there heard 
that the Staffords had levied an army, and were marching 
to besiege the city of Worcester ; and that Lovel, at the 
head of three or four thousand men, was approaching tc 
attack him in York. Henry was not dismayed with this 
intelligence. His active courage, full of resources, imme- 
diately prompted him to find the proper remedy. Though 
surrounded with enemies in these disafi*ected counties, he 
assembled a small body of troops in whom he could confide ; 
and having joined to them all his own attendants, he put 
them under the command of the duke of Bedford, who 
published a general promise of pardon to the rebels. This 
had a greater effect on their J^ader than on his followers. 
Lovel, who had undertaken an enterprise that exceeded 
his courage and capacity, was so terrified with the fear of 
desertion among his troops, that he suddenly withdrew 
himself, and after lurking some time in Lancashire, he 
made his escape into Flanders, where he was protected by 
the duchess of Burgundy. His army submitted to the 
king's clemency; and the other rebels, hearing of this 
success, raised the siege of Worcester, and dispersed them- 



160 - ■•% HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

selves. The StafFords took sanctuary in the church of 
Colnham, near Abingdon ; but being taken thence, the 
elder was executed at Tyburn, and the younger obtained 
a pardon. 

Henry's joy for this success was followed, some time 
after, by the birth of a prince, to whom he gave the name 
of Arthur, in memory of the famous British king of that 
name, from whom it was pretended the family of Tudor 
derived its descent. But his government had become in 
general unpopular; and the source of public discontent 
arose chiefly from his prejudices against the house of York. 

There lived in Oxford one Richard Simon, a priest of 
a subtle and enterprising genius. This man had enter- 
tained the design of disturbing Henry's govern- 
1 '.qA ment, by raising a pretender to his crown ; and for 
that purpose he cast his eyes on Lambert Simnel, 
a youth of fifteen years of age, the son of a baker, who 
was endowed with understanding above his years, and ad- 
dress above his condition. Him, Simon instructed to per- 
sonate the earl of Warwick, son of the duke of Clarence, 
who had been confined in the tower since the commence- 
ment of this reign ; and the queen dowager, finding her- 
self fallen into absolute insignificance, and her daughter 
treated vi^ith severity, was suspected of countenancing the 
imposture. 

In Ireland the scene of it first was opened. No sooner 
did Simnel present himself to Kildare, the deputy, and 
claim his protection as the unfortunate Warwick, than 
that credulous nobleman acknowledged him ; the people 
of Dublin tendered their allegiance to him, as to the true 
Plantagenet ; and the whole island followed the example 
of the capital. 

Henry, perplexed by the news of this revolt, first seized 
the queen dowager, whom he confined in the nunnery of 
Bermondsey, where she end|d her life in poverty and soli- 
tude. He next exposed Warwick through the streets of 
London ; but though this measure had its effect in Eng- 
land, the people of Ireland retorted on the king the re- 
proach of having shown a counterfeit personage. 

Henry had soon reason to apprehend that the design 
against him was not laid on slight foundations. John, 
earl of Lincoln, son of the duke of Suffolk, and of Eliza- 
beth, eldest sister of Edward IV., was engaged to take 



part in the conspiracy ; and having estabhshed a secret 
correspondence in Lancashire, he retired to Flanders, 
where Lovei had arrived a httle before him ; and he hved 
in the court of his aunt, the duchess of Burgundy. 

That princess, the widow of Charles the Bold, after 
consulting with Lincoln and Lovel, hired a body of two 
thousand veteran Germans, under the command of Martin 
Swart, a brave and experienced officer; and sent them 
over, together with these two noblemen, to join Simnel in 
Ireland. The countenance given by persons of such high 
rank, and the accession of this military force, much raised 
the courage of the Irish, and made them entertain the re- 
solution of invading England, as well from the hopes of 
plunder as of revenge. 

Being informed that Simnel was landed at Foudrey, in 
Lancashire, Henry drew together his forces, and advanced 
towards the enemy as far as Coventry. The rebels had 
entertained hopes that the disaffected counties in the north 
would rise in their favour ; but the people in general, 
averse to join Irish and German invaders, convinced of 
Lambert's imposture, and kept in awe by the king's repu- 
tation for success and conduct, either remained in tran- 
quility, or gave assistance to the royal army. The hostile 
armies met at Stoke, in the county of Nottingham, and 
fought a battle, which was bloody and obstinately dis- 
puted. The king's victory was purchased with loss, but 
was entirely decisive. Lincoln, Broughton, and Swart, 
perished in the field of battle, with four thousand 
of their followers ; and as Lovel was never more , \r.^ 
heard of, he was believed to have undergone the 
same fate.* Simnel, with his tutor Simon, was taken 

* Doctor Mavor, in his History of England, gives the following' 
probable account of the death of this distinguished nobleman, on the 
authority of the late Mr. Thomas Warton, who received his infor- 
mation, as well as could be recollected, from Dr. Dennison, a wit- 
ness of what is related : — " The walls of this nobleman's once magni- 
ficent seat at Minster Lovel, Oxfordshire, of which some ruins still 
remain, being pulled down for the sake of the materials, early in the 
last century, a secret chamber was discovered with a trap-door, and 
in it a skeleton of a person in complete armour was found. From 
hence "t was supposed, and on probable grounds, that this was the 
body of lord Lovel, who, after escaping from the battle of Stoke, 
took refuge in this place, and from some cause, not now to be ac- 
counted for, was left to perish in his concealment." 

14* 



^X^wViH-^t-'^'^- /ifi.\yWM 



162 \ . . HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

5 

prisoner. Simon, being a priest, was only committe* U 
close custody ; and Simnel, being too contemptible t b 
an object either of apprehension or resentment, was i^ai 
doned, and made a scuUion in tjie king's kitchen ; whenc>. 
he was afterwards advanced to the rank of a falconer. 

The duchess of Burgundy, full of resentment for the 
oppression of her family, and riither irritated than discou- 
raged by the ill success of her past enterprise, propagatea 
a report that her nephew, Richard Plantagenet, duke of 
York, had escaped from the tower, and was still alive ; 
and finding this rumour greedily received by the people, 
she sought for some young man proper to personate thai 
unfortunate prince. 

Warbeck, a renegado Jew of Tournay, who had visited 
London in the reign of Edward IV., had there a son born 
to him. Having had opportunities of being known to the 
king, and obtaining his favour, he prevailed with that 
prince, Avhose manners were very affable, to stand god- 
father to his son, to whom he gave the name of Peter, 
corrupted, after the Flemish manner, into Peterkin, or 
Perkin. It was by some believed that Edward, among his 
amorous adventures, had a secret commerce with War- 
beck's wife ; and people thence accounted for that resem- 
blance which was aftenvards remarked between young 
Perkin and that monarch. Some years after the birth of 
this child, Warbeck returned to Tournay, whence Perkin 
his son, by different accidents, was carried from place to 
place, and his birth and fortunes became thereby unknown, 
and difficult to be traced. The variety of his adventures 
had happily favoured the natural versatility and sagacity 
of his genius ; and he seemed to be a youth perfectly fitted 
to act any part, or assume any character. In this light 
he had been represented to the duchess of Burgundy, who 
found him to exceed her most sanguine expectations ; so 
comely did he appear in his person, so graceful in his air, 
so courtly in his address, so full of docility and good sense 
in his behaviour and conversation. The lessons neces- 
sary to be taught him, in order to his personating the duke 
of York, were soon learned by a youth of such quick ap- 
prehension ; and Margaret, in order the better to conceal 
him, sent him, under the care of lady Brampton, into Por- 
tuo-al, where he remained a year, unknown to all the world. 

The war, which was then ready to break out between 



HENRY vn. \ ^ ,v 163 



France and England, seemed to aiford a proper opportu- 
nity for this impostor to try his success; and I) eland, 
which still retained its attachment to the house of York, 
was chosen as the proper place for his first appearance. 
He landed at Cork ; and immediately assuming the name 
of Richard Plantagenet, drew to him partisans among that 
credulous people. The news soon reached France ; and 
Charles, prompted by the secret solicitations of the duchess 
of Burgundy, sent Perkin an invitation to repair to him at 
Paris. He received him with all the marks of regard due 
to the duke of York. The French courtiers readily em- 
braced a fiction which their sovereign thought it his inte- 
rest to adopt ; and Perkin, both by his deportment and 
personal qualities, supported the prepossession which was 
spread abroad of his royal pedigree. From France, tlie 
admiration and credulity diffused themselves into England : 
sir George Nevil, sir John Taylor, and above a hundred 
f>-entlemen more, came to Paris, in order to oft'er their 
services to the supposed duke of York, and to share his 
fortunes ; and the impostor had novr the appearance of a 
court attending him, and began to entertain hopes of final 
success. 

When peace was concluded between France and Eng- 
land, Charles consented to dismiss Perkin, who retired to 
the duchess of Burgimdy. That princess put on the ap- 
pearance of distrust ; and it was not till after a long and 
severe scrutiny, that she pretended to burst out into joy 
and admiration, and embraced Perkin as the true image 
of Edward, and the sole heir of the Plantagenets. 
Not the populace alone of England gave credit to | *|qo 
Perkin's pretensions ; men of the highest birth and ^ 
quality turned their eyes towards the new claimant; and 
sir Robert Clifford and William Barley made him a tender 
of their services. 

The king, informed of these particulars, proceeded deli- 
berately, though steadily, in counter- working the projects 
of his enemies. His first object was to ascertain the death 
of the real duke of York, and to confirm the opinion that 
had always prevailed with regard to that catastrophe ; but 
as only two of the persons employed by Richard, in the 
murder of his nephews, were now alive, and as the bodies 
were supposed to have been removed by Richard's orders, 
from the place where they were first interred, and could 



1G4 ■ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

not now be found, it was not in Henry's power to establish 
the fact beyond all doubt and controversy. He was, how- 
ever, more successful in detecting who this wonderful per- 
son was, who thus advanced pretensions to his crown. 
He engaged CliiFord, by the hope of rewards and pardon, 
to betray the secrets entrusted to him ; and such was the 
diligence of his spies, that in the issue the whole plan of 
the conspiracy was clearly laid before him, with the pedi- 
gree, adventures, life, and conversation, of the pretended 
duke of York ; and this latter part of the story was imme 
diately published for the satisfaction of the nation. 

Several of the conspirators were immediately arrested. 
Some of inferior rank were rapidly arraigned, convicted, 
and condemned for high treason ; but more solemnity was 
deemed necessary in the trial of sir William Stanley, one 
of the most opulent subjects in the kingdom. After six 
weeks' delay, which was interposed to show that the king 
was restrained by doubts and scruples, the prisoner was 
brought to his trial, condemned, and presently after be- 
headed. Historians, however, are not agreed as to the 
precise nature of the crime for which he suffered. 

The fate of Stanley struck the adherents of Perkin with 
the greatest dismay ; and as the impostor found that his 
pretensions Avere becoming obsolete, he resolved to attempt 
something which might revive the hopes and expectations 
of his partisans. Having collected a band of outlaws, 
pirates, robbers, and necessitous persons of all nations, to 
the number of six hundred men, he put to sea, with a reso- 
lution of making a descent in England. Information be- 
ing brought him that the king had made a progress to the 
north, he cast anchor on the coast of Kent, and sent some 
of his retainers ashore, who invited the country to join 
him. The gentlemen of Kent assembled some troops to 
oppose him ; but they purposed to do more essential ser- 
vice than by repelling the invasion ; they carried the sem- 
blance of friendship to Perkin, and invited him to come 
himself ashore, in order to take the command over them. 
But the wary youth, obsei-ving that they had more order 
and regularity in their movements than could be supposed 
in new levied forces who had taken arms against the es- 
tablished authority, refused to entrust himself into their 
hands; and the Kentish troops, despairing of success in 
their strata _^em, fell upon such of his retainers as were 



HENRY VII. 165 

already landed ; and killing some, they took a hundred 
and fit'ty prisoners, who were tried and condemned, and 
executed by orders from the king. 

This year a parliament was summoned in England, and 
another in Ireland ; and some remarkable laws 
were passed in both countries. The English par- , \^^ 
iiament passed an act, empowering the king to 
levy, by course of law, all the sums which any person had 
agreed to pay by way of benevolence ; a statute by which 
that arbitrary method of taxation was indirectly authorized 
and justified. 

The king's authority appeared equally prevalent and 
uncontrolled in Ireland. Sir Edward Poynings, who had 
been sent over to that country, with an intention of quel- 
ling the partisans of the house of York, and of reducing 
the natives to subjection, summoned a parliament at Dub- 
lin, and obtained the passing of that memorable statute, 
which still bears his name, and which, during three cen- 
turies, estabhshed the paramount authority of the English 
government in Ireland. By this statute, all the former 
laws of England were made to be in force in Ireland ; and 
no bill could be introduced into the Irish parliament, un- 
less it had previously received the sanction of the council 
of England.* 

After being repulsed from the coast of Kent, Perkin 
retired to Ireland ; but tired of the wandering life he was 
compelled to lead in that country, he passed over into 
Scotland, where he was favourably received by James IV., 
who gave him in marriage the lady Catharine Gordon, 
daughter of the earl of Huntley. The jealousy which 
subsisted between England and Scotland, induced James 
to espouse the cause of the impostor, and to make an in- 
road into England ; but Perkin's pretensions were now 
become stale, even in the eyes of the populace ; and 
James perceiving that while Perkin remained in Scotland, 
he should never enjoy a sohd peace with Henry, privately 
desired him to depart. 

After quitting Scotland, Perkin concealed himself in 
the wilds and fastnesses of Ireland. Impatient, however, 
of a retreat which was both disagreeable and dangerous, 

* By the act of union between Great Britain and Ireland, these, 
regulations, which had long been the object of jealousy and con- 
tention, were happily rendered obsolete. 



166 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

he held consultations with his followers, Heme, Skelton, 
and Astlej, three broken tradesmen ; and by their advice, 
he resolved to try the aftections of the Cornish, whose 
mutinous disposition had been lately manifested, in resist- 
ing the levy of a tax imposed for the purpose of repelling 
the inroad of the Scots. No sooner did he appear at 
Bodmin, in Cornwall, than the populace, to the numbei 
of three thousand, flocked to his standard; and Perkin, 
elated with this appearance of success, took on him, foi 
the first time, the appellation of Richard the Fourth, king 
of England. Not to suffer the expectations of his fol- 
lowers to languish, he presented himself before Exeter ; 
and finding that the inhabitants shut their gates against 
him, he laid siege to the place ; but being unprovided with 
artillery, ammunition, and every thing requisite for the 
attempt, he made no progress in his undertaking. 

When Heniy was informed that Perkin had landed in 
England, he expressed great joy at his being so near, and 
prepared himself with alacrity to attack him. The lords 
Daubeny and Broke, with sir Rice ap Thomas, hastened 
forward with a small body of troops to the relief of Exe- 
ter, and the king himself prepared to follow with a con- 
siderable army. 

Perkin, informed of these great preparations, immedi- 
ately raised the siege of Exeter, and retired to Taunton. 
Though his followers seemed still resolute to maintain his 
cause, he himself despaired of success, and secretly with- 
drew to the sanctuary of Beaulieu in the new forests. 
The Cornish rebels submitted to the king's mercy. Ex- 
cept a few persons of desperate fortunes who were exe- 
cuted, and some others who were severely fined, all the 
rest were dismissed with impunity. Lady Catharine Gor- 
don, wife to Perkin, fell into the hands of the victor, and 
was treated with a generosity which does him honour. 
He soothed her mind with many marks of regard, placed 
her in a reputable station about the queen, and assigned her 
a pension, which she enjoyed even under his successor. 

Perkin being persuaded, under promise of pardon, to 
deliver himself into the king's hands, was con- 
^'aqq ducted, in a species of mock triumph, to London. 
His confession of his life and adventures was pub- 
lished ; but though his life was granted him, he was still 
detained in custody. Impatient of confinement, he broke 



IIENRV VII* / ^ ^ 107 

from his keepers, aud fled to the sanctuary o't Shyne. He 
was then imprisoned in the tower, where his habits of 
restless intrigue and enterprise followed him. He insi- 
nuated himself into the intimacy of four servants of sir 
John Digby, lieutenant of the tower ; and, by their means, 
opened a correspondence with the earl of Warwick, who 
was confined in the same prison. This unfortunate prince, 
who had, from his earliest youth, been shut up from the 
commerce of men, and who was ignorant even of the 
most common affairs of life, had fallen into a fatuity, 
which made him susceptible of any impression. The 
continued dread also of the more violent effects of Henry's 
tyranny, joined to the natural love of liberty, engaged him 
to embrace a project for his escape, by the murder of the 
lieutenant ; and Perkin offered to conduct the whole en- 
terprise. The conspiracy escaped not the king's vigilance. 
Perkin, by this new attempt, had rendered himself totally 
unworthy of mercy; and he was accordingly arraigned, 
condemned, and soon after hanged at Tyburn, acknow- 
ledging his imposture to the last. 

It happened about that veiy time that one Wilford, a 
cordwainer's son, encouraged by the surprising credit 
given to other impostures, had undertaken to personate 
the earl of Warwick ; and a priest had even ventured from 
the pulpit to recommend his cause to the people. This 
incident served Henry as a pretence for his severity to- 
wards that prince. He was brought to trial, and accused 
of forming designs to disturb the government, and raise an 
insurrection among the people. Warwick confessed the 
indictment, was condemned, and the sentence was execu- 
ted upon him. This act of tyranny, the capital blemish of 
Henry's reign, occasioned great discontent ; and though 
he endeavoured to alleviate the odium of his guilt, by 
sharing it with his ally, Ferdinand of Arragon, who, he 
said, had scrupled to give his daughter Catherine in mar- 
riage to Arthur, while any male descendant of the house 
of York remained ; — this only increased the indignation of 
the people, at seeing a young prince sacrificed to the jea- 
lous politics of two subtle tyrants. 

There was a remarkable similarity of character between 
these two monarchs : both were full of craft, intrigue, and 
design ; and though a resemblance of this nature be a 
slender foundation for confidence and amity, such was the 



J()3 HISTORY OF EKGL\SD. 

situation of Hemy and Ferdinand, that no jealou&y over 
arose between them. The king completed a marriage, 
which had been projected and negotiated during the course 
of seven years, between Arthur prince of Wales, and the 
infanta Catherine, fourth daughter of Ferdinand and £sa- 
bclla ; but this marriage proved in the issue unprosperous. 
The young prince a few months after sickened and died^ 
much regretted by the nation. Henry, desirous to con- 
tinue his alUance with Spain, 5nd also unwilling to restore 
Catherine's dowry, which was two hundred thousand du- 
cats, obliged liis second son Heniy, whom he created 
prince of Wales, to be contracted to the infanta, by virtue 
of a dispensation from the pope. This marriage was, in 
the event, attended with the most important consequences. 
hi the same year, another marriage was celebrated, which 
was also in the next age productive of great events ; the 
marriage of Margaret, the king's eldest daughter, with 
James, king of Scotland. Amidst these prosperous inci- 
dents the queen died in child-bed ; and the infant did not 
long survive her. This princess was deservedly a fa- 
vourite of the nation ; and the general affection for her was 
augmented by the harsh treatment which it was thought 
she experienced from her consort. 

Uncontrolled by apprehension or opposition of any kind, 
Henry now gave full scope to his natural, propen- 
sity; and his avarice, which had ever been the ,l^o 
ruling passion of his mind, broke through all re- 
straints. He had found tv/o ministers, Empsom and Dud- 
ley, perfectly qualified to second his rapacious and tyran- 
nical inclinations. These instruments of oppression were 
both lawyers. By their knowledge in law these men were 
qualified to pervert the forms of justice to the oppression 
of the innocent ; and the formidable authority of the king 
supported them in all their iniquities. In vain did the 
people look for protection from the parliament ; that as- 
sembly was so overawed, that during the greatest rage of 
Henry's oppression, the commons chose Dudley their 
speaker, and granted him the subsidies which he demand- 
ed. By the arts of accumulation, this monarch so filled 
his coff*ers, that he is said to have po-ssessed at one time 
the sum of one million eight hundred thousand pounds ; 
a treasure almost incredible, if we consider the scarcity of 
money in those times. 



if^J(<^}vSk^ <kP . ;.f^^ 



HENRY VII. / ^ ,, 169 

The decline of his heahh induced the king to turn his 
thoughts towards tJiat future existence, which the iniqui- 
ties and severities of his reign rendered a very dismal pros- 
pect to him. To alJay the terrors under which he labour- 
ed, he endeavoured, by distributing alms, and founding 
religious houses, to make atonement for his crimes, and to 
purchase by the sacrifice of part of his ill-gotten treasures, 
a reconciliation with his offended Maker. Remorse even 
seized him, at intervals, for the abuse of his authority by 
Empson and Dudley ; but not sufficiently to make him 
stop the rapacious hand of those oppressors. However, 
death, by its nearer approaches, impressed new terrors 
upon him ; and he then ordered, by a general clause in 
his will, that restitution should be made to all those whom 
he had injured. He died of a consumption, at his 
ikoQ f^vo^^ite palace of Richmond, after a reign of 
twenty-three years and eight months, and in the 
fifty-second year of his age. 

The reign of Henry the Seventh was, on the whole, for- 
tunate for his people at home, and honourable abroad. 
He loved peace without fearing war ; and this acquired 
him the regard and consideration of foreign princes. His 
capacity was excellent, though somewhat contracted by 
the narrowness of his heart. Avarice was his ruling pas- 
sion ; and to gratify it, he sacrificed every honourable 
principle. 

This prince, though he exalted his prerogative above 
law, is celebrated for many good laws which he establish- 
ed for the government of his subjects ; but the most im- 
portant law in its consequences which was enacted during 
the reign of Henry, was that by which the nobility and 
gentry acquired a power of breaking the ancient entails, 
and of alienating their estates. By means of this law, 
joined to the beginning luxury and refinement of the age, 
the great fortunes of the barons were gradually dissipated, 
and the property of the commons increased in England. 
It is probable that Henry foresaw and intended this con- 
sequence ; because the constant scheme of his policy con- 
sisted in depressing the great, and exalting churchmen, 
lawyers, and men of new famihes, who would be more ob- 
sequious. 

It was during this reign, that Christopher Columbus 
discovered America ; and Vasquez de Gama passed the 
L5 



170 r) , HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

Cape of Good Hope, and opened a new passage to the 
East Indies. It was by accident only that Henry had not 
a considerable share in those great naval discoveiies. 
However, he fitted out Sebastian Cabot, a Venetian, set- 
tled in Bristol ; and sent him westward, in 1498, in search 
of new countries. Cabot discovered the main land ol 
America, towards the sixtieth degree of northern latitude, 
Newfoundland, and many other countries ; but returned 
to England without making any conquest or settlement. 
Elliot, and other merchants in Bristol, made a like at- 
tempt in 1502. The king expended fourteen thousand 
pounds in building one ship, called the " Great Harry ;" 
which was, properly speaking, the first ship in the Eng- 
lish navy. In 1453, Constantinople was taken by the 
Turks ; and the Greeks, among whom some remains of 
learning were still preserved, being scattered by these bar- 
barians, took shelter in Italy, and imported, together with 
their admirable language, a tincture of their science, and 
of their refined taste in poetry and eloquence. About the 
same time, the purity of the Latin was revived ; and the 
art of printing, invented about that time, extremely facili- 
tated the progress of all these improvements. The in- 
vention of gunpowder changed the whole art of war ; and 
mighty innovations were soon after made in religion. Thus 
a general revolution was produced in human affairs 
throughout this part of the world ; and men gradually en- 
tered on that career of commerce, arts, science, govern- 
ment, and police, in which, with the exception of some 
pauses, they have ever since been persevering. 



CHAP. X. 

The Reign of Henry VIIL 
The accession of Henry the Eighth spread universal 
joy and satisfaction. Instead of a monarch jealous, severe, 
and avaricious, a young prince of eighteen had sue- 
ceeded to the throne, who, even in the eyes of men ^^Qg 
of sense, gave promising hopes of his future con- 
duct, much more in those of the people, always enchanted 
with novelty, youth, and royal dignity. Hitherto he had 
been occupied entirely in manly exercises and the pur- 
suits of literature ; and the proficiency which he made in 
each, gave no bad prognostic of his parts and capacity. 



HENRY VIII. 171 

Even the vices of vehemence, ardour, and impatience, to 
which he was subject, and which afterwards degenerated 
into tyranny, were considered only as faults of unguarded 
youth, which would be corrected by time. 

The chief competitors for favour were the earl of Sur- 
rey and Fox bishop of Winchester. The former was a 
dexterous courtier, and promoted that taste for pleasure 
and magnificence, which began to prevail under the young 
monarch. The vast treasures amassed by the late king, 
were gradually dissipated in the giddy expenses of Henry ; 
or if he intermitted the course of his festivity, he chiefly 
employed himself in application to music and literature, 
which were his favourite pursuits, and which were well 
adapted to his genius. And though he was so unfortunate 
as to be seduced into a study of the barren controversies 
of the schools, which were then fashionable, and had 
chosen Thomas Aquinas for his favourite author, he still 
discovered a capacity for more useful and interesting ac- 
quirements. 

Empson and Dudley were sent to the tower, and soon 
after brought to trial ; and their execution was less an act 
of justice, than for the purpose of gratifying the people. 
Henry, however, while he punished the instruments of 
past tyranny, paid such deference to former engagements, 
as to celebrate his marriage with the infanta Catherine, 
though her former marriage with his brother was urged by 
the primate as an important objection. 

At this time, when the situation of the several powerful 
states of Europe promised, by balancing each other, a 
long tranquility, the flames of war were kindled by Julius 
II. an ambitious and enterprising pontiff", who determined 
to expel all foreigners from Italy, and drew over Ferdi- 
nand to his party. He solicited the favour of England, by 
sending Henry a sacred rose, perfumed with musk, and 
anointed with chrism ; and he also gave him hopes, that 
the title of " Most Christian King," which had hitherto 
been annexed to the crown of France, should in reward 
of his sei*vices be transferred to that of England. Impa- 
tient also of acquiring distinction in Europe, Henry joined 
the alliance, which the pope, in conjunction with Spain 
and Venice, had formed against the French monarch. 

Henry's intended invasion of France roused the jealousy 
of the Scottish nation. The ancient league, which sub- 



172 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

sisted between France and Scotland, was conceived to be 
the strongest band of connexion; and the Scots univer- 
sally believed, that were it not for the countenance which 
they received from this foreign alliance, they had never 
been able so long to maintain their independence against a 
people so much superior. James was farther incited to 
take part in the quarrel by the invitations of Anne queen of 
France, whose knight he had ever in all tournaments pro- 
fessed himself, and who summoned him, according to the 
ideas of romantic gallantry, prevalent in that age, to take 
tlie field in her defence, and to prove himself her true and 
valorous champion. He first sent a squadron of ships to 
the assistance of France, the only fleet which Scotland 
seems ever to have possessed ; and though he still made 
professions of maintaining a neutrality, the English am- 
bassador easily foresaw, that a war would in the end prove 
inevitable, and gave warning of the danger to his master. 
Henry, ardent for military fame, was little discouraged 
by this appearance of a diversion from tha north. He had 
now got a minister who flatttered him in every scheme to 
which his impetuous temper inclined. Thomas Wolsey, 
dean, of Lincoln, and almoner to the king, surpassed in 
favour all his ministers, and was fast advancing towards 
that unrivalled grandeur which he aftei'wards attained. 
This man was son of a butcher at Ipswich ; but having got 
a learned education, and being endowed with an excellent 
capacity, he was admitted into the marquis of Dorset's fa- 
mily as tutor to that nobleman's children, and soon gained 
the favour and countenance of his patron. He was recom- 
mended to be chaplain to Henry VH. ; and being employ- 
ed by that monarch in a secret negotiation, he acquitted 
hiinself to the king's satisfaction, and was considered at 
court as a rising man. The death of Henry retarded his 
advancement ; but Fox bishop of Winchester cast his eye 
upon him, as one who might be serviceable to him in his 
present situation. This prelate, observing that the earl of 
Surrey had totally eclipsed him in favour, resolved to in- 
troduce Wolsey to the young prince's familiarity, and 
hoped that he might rival Surrey in his insinuating arts, 
and yet be content to act in the cabinet a part subordinate 
to Fox himself, who had promoted him. In a little time 
Wolsey gained so much on the king, that he supplanted 
\ both Surrey in his favour, and Fox in his trust and confi- 



HENRY VIII. ■ / ^. 173 

dence. Being admitted to Henry's parties of pleasure, he 
took the lead in every jovial conversation, and promoted 
all that frolic and entertainment which he found suitable 
to the a^e and inclination of the young monarch. Neither 
\iis own years, which were near forty, nor his character of 
a clergyman, were any restraint upon him, or engaged him 
to check, by any useless severity, the gayety in which 
Henry passed his careless hours. 

The king soon advanced his favourite, from being the 
companion of his pleasures, to be a member of his coun- 
cil ; and from being a member of his council, to be his 
sole and absolute minister. By this rapid advancement 
and uncontrolled authority, the character and genius of 
Wolsey had full opportunity to display themselves. In- 
satiable in his acquisitions, but still more magnificent in 
his expense ; of extensive capacity, but still more un- 
bounded enterprise ; ambitious of power, but still more 
desirous of glory ; insinuating, engaging, persuasive ; and, 
by turns, lofty, elevated, commanding; haughty to his 
equals, but aifable to his dependants ; oppressive to the 
people, but liberal to his friends; raore generous than 
grateful; less moved by injuries than by contempt; he\ 
was framed to take the ascendant in every intercourse with | 
others, but exerted this superiority of nature with such | 
ostentation as exposed him to envy, and made every one f 
willing to recall the original inferiority of his condition. -*' 

A considerable force having sailed over to Calais, Heniy 
prepared to follow with the main body and rear of the 
army ; and he appointed the queen regent of the kingdom 
during his absence. He was accompanied by the duke of 
Buckingham, and many others of the nobility ; but of the 
allies, on whose assistance he relied, the Swiss alone per- 
formed their engagements, and invaded France. The 
emperor Maximilian, instead of reinforcing the Swiss with 
eight thousand men, as he had promised, joined the Eng- 
lish army with a few German and Flemish soldiers ; and 
observing the disposition of the English monarch to be 
more bent on glory than on interest, he enlisted himself 
into his service, and received one hundred crowns a day, 
as one of his subjects and captains, though, in reality, he 
directed all the operations of the English army. 

Terouane, a town situated on the frontiers of Picardy, 
was reduced to the last extremity from want of provisions 
15* 



174 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

and ammunition, when eight hundred horsemen, each of 
whom carried a sack of gunpowder behind him, and two 
(quarters of bacon, made a sildden irruption into the Eng- 
lish camp, deposited their burden in the town, and again 
broke through the Enghsh without suffering any loss in 
this dangerous enterprise. But the Enghsh had, soon 
after, full revenge for the insult. Henry had received in- 
telligence of the approach of the French horse, who had 
advanced to protect another incursion of Fontraillcs ; and 
he ordered some troops to pass the Lis, for the purpose of 
opposing him. The cavalry of France, though they con- 
sisted chiefly of gentlemen who had behaved with great 
gallantry in many desperate actions in Italy, were, on sight 
of the enemy, seized with so unaccountable a panic, that 
they immediately took to flight, and were pursued by the 
English. The duke of Longueville, who commanded the 
French, and many other officers of distinction, were made 
prisoners. This action, or rather rout, is sometimes call- 
ed the battle of Guinegate, from the place where it was 
fought ; but more commonly the '' battle of spurs," be- 
cause the French, that day, made more use of their spurs 
than of their swords or military weapons. 

After the capture of Terouane and Tournay, the king- 
returned to England, and carried with him the greater 
part of his army. Success had attended him in every 
enterprise ; but all men of judgment were convinced that 
this campaign was, in reality, both ruinous and inglorious 
to him. 

The success which attended Hemy's arms in the north, 
was much more decisive. The king of Scotland had 
assembled the whole force of his kingdom ; and after 
passing the Tweed with an army of fifty tliousand men, 
he ravaged the parts of Northumberland nearest to tliat 
river, and employed himself in taking several castles of 
small importance. The earl of Surrey, having collected 
a force of twenty-six thousand men, marched to the de- 
fence of the country, and approached the Scots, who had 
encamped on some high ground near the hills of Cheviot. 
Surrey feigned a march towards Berwick ; and the Scot- 
tish army having descended the hill, an engagement be- 
came inevitable. A furious action commenced, and was 
continued till night separated the combatants. The vic- 
toiy seemed yet undecided, and the numbers that fell on 



nr.^nr v:n. 175 

each side were nearly equal, amounting to above five 
thousand men ; but the morning discovered where the ad- 
vantage lay. The English had lost only persons of small 
note ; but the Scottish nobility had fallen in battle, and 
their king himself, after the most diligent inquiry, could 
no where be found. 

The king of Scotland, and most of his chief nobles, be- 
ing slain in the field of Fouden, an inviting opportunity 
was offered to Henry of reducing that kingdom to subjec- 
tion ; but he discovered on this occasion a mind truly great 
and generous. When the queen of Scotland, Margaret, 
who was created regent during the infancy of her son, 
applied for peace, he readily granted it ; and compassion- 
ated the helpless condition of his sister and nephew. The 
earl of Surrey, who had gained him so great a victory, was 
restored to the title of duke of Norfolk, which had been 
forfeited by his father for engaging on the side of Richard 
the Third ; and Wolsey, who was both his favourite and 
Iiis minister, was created bishop of Lincoln. 

Peace with Scotland enabled Henry to prosecute his 
enterprise against France, yet several incidents 
opened his eyes to the rashness of the undertaking ; ^ '^F*' 
and the duke of Longueville, who had been made 
prisoner at the battle of Guinegate, was ready to take ad- 
vantage of this disposition. He represented, that as Lewis 
was a widower without male children, no marriage could 
be more suitable to him than that with the princess Mary, 
the sister of Henry. The king seemed to hearken to this 
discourse with willing ears ; and Longueville received full 
powers from his master for negotiating the treaty. The 
iirticles were easily adjusted between the monarchs. 

The espousals of Mary and Lewis were soon after cele- 
brated at Abbeville ; but the monarch was seduced into a 
course of gayety and pleasure, very unsuitable to the de • 
cliinng state of his health, and died in less than 
three months after the marriage. He was sue- ^ '-| i 
ceeded by Francis, duke of Angouleme, who had 
married the eldest daughter of Lewis. 

The numerous enemies whom Wolsey's sudden eleva ' 
tion and haughty deportment had raised him, served only 
to rivet him faster in Henry's confidence. He preferred 
him to the archbishopric of York, and allowed him to 
unite with it the sees of Durham and of Winchester j while 



176 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

the pope, observing his great influence over the king, and 
desirous of engaging him in his interests, created him a 
cardinal. His train consisted of eight hundred servants, 
of whom many Avere knights and gentlemen. Whoever 
was distinguished by any art or science, paid court to the 
cardinal ; and none paid court in vain. Literature, which 
was then in its infancy, found in him a genei-ous patron ; 
and both by his public institutions and private bounty, he 
gave encouragement to every branch of erudition. Not 
content, however, with this munificence, which gained him 
the approbation of the wise, he strove to dazzle the eyes 
of the populace, by the splendour of his equipage and 
furniture, the costly embroidery of his liveries, and the 
richness of his apparel. 

Warham, chancellor and archbishop of Canterbury, a 
man of a moderate temper, and averse to all disputes, 
chose rather to retire from public employment, than main- 
tain an unequal contest with the haughty cardinal. He 
resigned his office of chancellor ; and the great seal was 
immediately delivered to Wolsey. If this new accumula- 
tion of dignity increased bis enemies, it also served to 
exalt his personal character, and prove the extent of his 
capacity. A strict administration of justice took place 
during the time he filled this high office ; and no chan- 
cellor ever discovered greater impartiality in his decisions, 
deeper penetration of judgment, or more enlarged know- 
ledge of law and equity. 

The title of legate, which was afterwards conferred on 
Wolsey, brought with it a great accession of power and 
dignity. He erected an office, which he called the lega- 
tine court, and on which he conferred a kind of inquisito- 
rial and censorial power, even over the laity ; and directed 
it to inquire into all actions, which, though they escaped the 
law, might appear contrary to good morals. The abuse, 
however, of this court, at length reached the king's ears ; 
and he expressed such displeasure at the cardinal, as made 
him ever after more cautious in exerting his authority. 

While Henry, indulging himself in pleasure and amuse- 
ment, intrusted the government of his kingdom to 
ikiQ ^^^^ imperious minister, an incident happened 
abroad, which excited his attention. Maximilian, 
the emperor, died ; a man who, of himself, was indeed ol 
little consequence ; but as his death left vacant the first 



HENRY VIII. 177 

station among christian princes, it set the passions of men 
in agitation, and proved a kind of era in the general sys- 
tem of Europe. The kings of France and Spain imme- 
diately declared themselves candidates for the imperial 
crown, and employed every expedient of money or intrigue, 
which promised them success in so great a point of ambi 
tion. Henry also was encouraged to advance his preten 
sions ; but his minister. Pace, who was despatched to thn 
electors, found that he began to canvass too late. 

Francis and Charles professed from the beginning to 
carry on this rivalship without enmity ; but all men per- 
ceived that this moderation would not be of long duration ; 
and when Charles at length prevailed, the French monarch 
could not suppress his indignation at being disappointed 
in so important a pretension. Both of them were princes 
endowed with talents and abilities ; brave, aspiring, active, 
warlike ; beloved by their servants and subjects, dreaded 
by their enemies, and respected by all the world : Francis, 
open, frank, liberal, munificent ; carrying these virtues to 
an excess which prejudiced his affairs: Charles, political, 
close, artful, frugal ; better qualified to obtain success in 
wars and in negotiations, especially the latter. The one 
the more amiable man ; the other the greater monarch. 
Charles reaped the succession of Castile, of Arragon, of 
Austria, of the Netherlands ; he inherited the conquest of 
Naples, of Grenada ; election entitled him to the empire ; 
€ven the bounds of the globe seemed to be enlarged a little 
before his time, that he might possess the whole treasure, 
as yet entire and unrifled, of the new world. But though 
the concurrence of all these advantages formed an empire, 
greater and more extensive than any known in Europe 
since that of the Romans, the kingdom of France alone, 
being close, compact, united, rich, populous, and interpo , 
sed between the provinces of the emperor's dominions, 
was able to make a vigorous opposition to his progress, 
and maintain the contest against him. 

Henry possessed the facility of being able, both by the 
native force of his kingdom and its situation, to hold the 
balance between those two powers ; but he was heedless, 
inconsiderate, capricious, and impolitic. Francis, well 
acquainted with his character, solicited an interview near 
Calais, in hopes of being able, by familiar conversation, to 
gain upon his friendship and confidence. Wolsey ear- 



178 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

nestly seconded this proposal; and, as Henry hiraself 
: loved show and magnificence, he cheerfully adjusted the 
■ preliminaries of the interview. The two monarchs met 
in a field within the Englisli pale, between Guisnes 
; I \2Ci ^^^ Andres ; and such was their profusion of ex- 
pense, as procured to the place the name of the 
Field of the Cloth of Gold, 

A defiance had been sent by the two kings to each 
other's court, and through all the chief cities of Europe, 
importing, that Henry and Francis, with fourteen aids, 
would be ready in the plains of Picardy, to answer all 
comers that were gentlemen, at tilt and tournament. The 
monarchs, in order to fulfil this challenge, advanced into 
the field on horseback; Francis smTounded with Henry's 
guards, and Henry with those of Francis. They were 
gorgeously apparelled ; and were both of them the most 
comely personages of their age, as well as the most expert 
in every military exercise. They carried away the prize 
at all trials in those dangerous pastimes. The ladies 
were the judges in these feats of chivalry, and put an end 
to the rencounter whenever they deemed it expedient. 

Henry afterwards paid a visit to the emperor and Mar- 
garet of Savoy at Gravelines ; and the artful Charles ef- 
faced all the friendship to which the frank and generous 
nature of Francis had given birth. He secured Wolsey 
in his interests, by assuring him of his assistance in ob- 
taining the papacy, and by putting him in immediate pos- 
session of the revenues belonging to the sees of Badajox 
and Placentia. 

The violent emulation between the emperor. and the 
French king, soon broke out in hostilities. Henry, who 
pretended to be neutral, engaged them to send their am- 
bassadors to Calais, there to negotiate a peace, under the 
mediation of Wolsey and the pope's nuncio. The empe- 
ror was well apprized of the partiality of these mediators ; 
and his demands in the conference were so unreasonable, 
as plainly proved him conscious of the advantage. On 
Francis rejecting the terms proposed, the congress of 
Calais broke up, and Wolsey, soon after, took a journey 
to Bruges, where he met with the emperor. He was re- 
ceived with the same state, magnificence, and respect, as 
if he had been the king of England himself; and he con 
eluded, in his master's name, an offensive aUianee with 



HENRY Vlll. 179 

the pope and the emperor, the result of the private views 
and ambitious projects of the cardinal. 

An event of the greatest importance engrossed at this 
time the attention of all Europe. Leo X., by his generous 
and enterprising temper, having exhausted his treasury, in 
order to support his liberalities, had recourse to the sale 
of indulgences. The produce of this revenue, particularly 
that which arose from Saxony and the countries bordering 
on the Baltic, war farmed out to a merchant of Genoa. 
The scandal of thit, transaction, with the licentious lives 
which the collectors are reported to have led, roused Mar 
tin Luther, a professor of the university of Wittemberg, 
who not only preached against these abuses in the sale of 
indulgences, but even decried indulgences themselves, and 
was thence carried, by the heat of dispute, to question the 
authority of the pope. Finding his opinions greedily 
hearkened to, he promulgated them by writing and dis- 
course ; and in a short time, all Europe was filled with 
the voice of this daring innovator. 

As there subsisted in England great remains of the 
Lollards, the doctrines of Luther secretly gained many 
partisans ; but Henry had been educated in a strict attach- 
ment to the church of Rome, and therefore opposed the 
progress of the Lutheran tenets, by all the influence which 
his extensive and almost absolute authority conferred upon 
him. He even wrote a book in Latin against the princi- 
ples of Luther; a performance which, if allowance be 
made for the subject and the age, does no discredit to his 
capacity. He sent a copy of it to Leo, who received so 
magnificent a present with great testimony of regard ; and 
conferred on him the title of " Defender of the Faith ;" 
an appellation still retained by the kings of England. 

Henry having declared war against France, Surrey 
landed some troops at Cherbourg, in Normandy ; 
and after laying waste the country, he sailed to 1V99 
Morlaix, a rich town in Brittany, which he took 
and plundered. The war with France, however, pro- 
ceeded slowly for want of money. Heniy had caused a 
general survey to be made of his Idngdom, and had issued 
his privy seal to the most wealthy, demanding loans of 
particular sums ; he soon after published an edict for a 
general tax upon his subjects, which he still called a loan ; 
and he levied five shillings in the pound upon the clergy, 



180 HISTOKY OP ENGLAND. 

and two upon the laity. The parliament, which was sum 
moned about this time, was far from complaining of these 
illegal transactions ; but the commons, more tenacious of 
their money than their national privileges, refused a grant 
of eight hundred thousand pounds, divided into four yearly 
payments ; a sum computed to be equal to four shillings 
in the pound of one year's revenue ; and they only voted 
an imposition of three shillings in the pound of all pos- 
sessed of fifty pounds a year and upwards, of two shillings 
in the pound on all who enjoyed twenty pounds a year and 
upwards, one shilling on all who possessed between twenty 
pounds and forty shillings a year, and on the other sub- 
jects above sixteen years of age, a groat a head. The 
king was dissatisfied with this saving disposition of the 
commons ; and on pretence of necessity, he levied in one 
year, from all who were worth forty pounds, what the par- 
liament had granted him payable in four years. These 
irregularities were commonly ascribed to Wolsey's coun- 
sels, who, trusting to the protection afibrded him by his 
ecclesiastical character, was less scrupulous in his en- 
croachments on the civil rights of the nation. 

A new treaty was concluded between Henry and Charles 
for the invasion of France ; but the duke of Bour- 
t'^'M ^^^^' ^^ whom Charles confided a powerful army, 
in order to conquer Provence and Dauphiny, was 
obliged, after an ineffectual attempt on Marseilles, to lead 
liis forces, weakened, baffled, and disheartened, into Italy. 
Francis might now have enjoyed, in safety, the glory of 
repulsing all his enemies ; but, ardent for the conquest of 
Milan, he passed the Alps, and laid siege to Pavia, a town 
of considerable strength, and defended by LeyVa, one ot 
the bravest officers in the Spanish service. Every attempt 
which the French king made to gain this impor- 
t'rnr tant place proved fruitless. Fatigue and unfavour- 
able weather had wasted the French army, when 
the imperial army, commanded by Pescara, Lannoy, and 
Bourbon, advanced to raise the siege. The imperial gene 
rals, after cannonading the French camp for several days, 
at last made a general assault, and broke into the entrench- 
ments. Francis's forces were put to the rout, and himself, 
surrounded by his enemies, after fighting with heroic va- 
lour, and killing seven men with his own hand, was obli- 
ged at last to surrender himself prisoner. Almost the whole 



HENRY VIII. 181 

anny, full of nobility and brave officers, either perished by 
the sword, or were drowned in the river. The few who 
escaped with their lives fell into the hands of the enemy. 

Henry was startled at this important event, and became 
sensible of his own danger, from the loss of a proper coun- 
terpoise to the power of Charles. Instead of taking advan- 
tage, therefore, of the distressed condition of Francis, he 
was determined to lend him assistance in his present cala- 
mities ; and, as the glory of generosity in raising a fallen 
enemy concurred with his political interest, he hesitated 
the less in embracing these new measures. He con- 
cluded an alliance with the regent of France, and engaged 
to procure her son his liberty on reasonable conditions. 
Charles, dreading a general combination against him, 
was at length prevailed on to sign the treaty of Madrid. 
The principal condition was the restoring of Francis's 
liberty, and the delivery of his two eldest sons as hostages 
to the emperor for the cession of Burgundy. 

The more to cement the union between Henry and 
Francis, a new treaty was some time after concluded at 
London ; in which the former agreed finally to renounce 
all claims to the crown of France ; claims which might 
Qow indeed be deemed chimerical, but which often served 
as a pretence for disturbing the tranquility of the two na- 
tions. As a return for this concession, Francis bound 
himself and his successors to pay for ever fifty thousand 
crowns a year to Henry and his successors; and that 
greater solemnity might be given to this treaty, it was 
agreed that the parliaments and great nobility of both king- 
doms should give their assent to it. Thus, the terror of the 
emperor's greatness had extinguished the ancient animo- 
sity between the nations ; and Spain, during more than a 
century, became the object of jealousy to the English. 

The marriage of Henry with Catherine of Arragon, his 
bi*other's widow, had not passed without much scruple and 
difficulty ; the prejudices of the people were in general bent 
against a conjugal union between such near relations ; and 
with some doubts that naturally arose in Henry's mind, 
there concurred other causes, which tended much to in- 
crease his remorse. The queen was older than the king 
by no less than six years ; and the decay of her beauty, 
together with particular infirmities and diseases, had con- 
tributed, notwithstanding her blameless character and de 
16 



182 HISIOEY OF ENGLAND. 

portment, to render her person unacceptable to him. 
Though she had borne him several children, they all died 
in early infancy, except one daughter ', and he was the 
more struck with this misfortune, because the curse of be- 
ing childless is the very threatening contained in the Mo- 
saical law against those who espouse their brother's widow. 
The succession, too, of the crown was a consideration that 
occurred to every one, whenever the lawfulness of Henry's 
marriage was called in question ; and it was apprehended, 
that if doubts of Mary's legitimacy concurred with the 
weakness of her sex, the king of Scots, the next heir, 
would advance his pretensions, and might throw the king- 
dom into confusion. Thus the king was impelled, both 
by Jiis private passions, and by motives of public interest, 
to seek the dissolution of his inauspicious, and, as it was 
esteemed, unlawful marriage with Catherine. 

Anne Boleyn, who lately appeared at court, had been 
appointed maid of honour to the queen, and had acquired 
an entire ascendant over Henry's affections. This young 
lady, whose grandeur and misfortunes have rendered her 
so celebrated, was daughter of sir Thomas Boleyn, who 
had been employed by the king in several embassies, and 
who was allied to all the principal nobility in the kingdom. 
Henry's scruples or aversion had made him break oiF all 
conjugal commerce with the queen ; but as he still sup- 
ported an intercourse of civility and friendship with her, 
he had occasion, in the frequent visits which he paid her, 
to observe the beauty, the youth, the c-harms of Anne Bo- 
leyn. Finding the accomplishment of her mind no wise 
inferior to her exterior graces, he even entertained the de- 
sign of raising her to the throne ; and as every motive of 
inclination and policy seemed thus to concur in making 
the king desirous of a divorce from Catherine, he resolved 
to make application to pope Clement, and sent Knight, his 
secretary, to Rome for that purpose. Clement was then 

a prisoner in the hands of the emperor ; and when 
■t'enci the English secretly solicited him in private, he 

received a very favourable answer. After Clement 
had recovered his liberty, he granted a commission, to try 
the validity of the king's marriage, in which cardinal 
Campeggio was joined with Wolsey ; but in conformity 
with the pope's views and intentions, tl>3 former deferred 
the decision by the most artful delays. At length, the 



HENRY VIII. 183 

business seemed to be drawing near to a period : and the 
king was every day in expectation of a sentence in his 
favour, when the menaces and promises of Charles proved 
ouccessful ; and Clement suspended the commission of 
the legates, and adjourned the cause to his own personal 
judgment at Rome. 

Wolsey had long foreseen the failure of this measure as 
the sure forerunner of his ruin. The dukes of Norfolk 
and Suffolk were sent to require from him the great seal, 
which was delivered by the king to sir Thomas More. All 
his furniture and plate were seized ; and the cardinal was 
ordered to retire to Esher, a country seat which he pos- 
sessed near Hampton court. 

Dr. Thomas Cranmer, fellow of Jesus College in Cam- 
bridge, a man remarkable for his learning, and still more 
for the candour and disinterestedness of his temper, falling 
one evening by accident into company with Gardiner, 
now secretary of state, and Fox, the king's almoner, the 
business of the divorce became the subject of conversation. 
Cranmer observed, that the readiest way, either to quiet 
Henry's conscience, or extort the pope's consent, would be 
to consult all the universities of Europe with regard to 
this controverted point. When the king was informed of 
the proposal, he was delighted with it, and immediately, 
in prosecution of the scheme proposed, employed his agents 
to collect the judgments of all the unive sities in Europe. 
The universities of France, of Venice, Ferrara, Padua, 
and Bologna, with those of Oxford and Cambridge, 
1 k*^0 S^^^ their opinion in the king's favour ; and the 
convocations both of Canterbury and York pro- 
nounced Henry's marriage invalid. But Clement, who 
was still under the influence of the emperor, continued to 
summon th** king to appear, either by himself or proxy, 
before his tviounal at Rome. 

After Wolsey had remained some time at Esher, he was 
allowed to remove to Richmond ; but the courtiers, dread- 
ing still his vicinity to the king, procured an order for him 
to remove to his see of York. The cardinal, therefore, 
took up his residence at Cawood in Yorkshire ;• but he 
was not allowed to remain long unmolested in this retreat. 
The earl of Northumberland received orders, without re- 
gard to Wo\sey's ecclesiastical character, to arrest him for 
high treason, and to conduct him to London, in order to 



184 , HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

take his trial. The cardinal, partly from the fatigues of 
hi-s journey, partly from the agitation of his anxious mind, 
was seized with a disorder which turned into a dysentery, 
and he was able, with some difficulty, to reach Leicester- 
abbey, where he immediately took to his bed, whence he 
never rose more. A little before he. expired, among other 
expressions, he used the following words to sir William 
Kingston, constable of the tower, who had him in custo- 
dy : " Had I but sei-ved God as diligently as I have served 
my king, he would not have given me over in my gray 
hairs." Thus died this famous cardinal, whose character 
seems to have contained as singular a variety as the for- 
tune to which he was exposed. 

A new session of parliament was held, together with a 
convocation ; and from the latter a confession was 

An 

\ Vol extorted, that " the king was the protector, and 
the supreme head of the church and clergy of Eng' 
land." In the next session, an act was passed against le- 
vying the annates or first-fmits ; and it was also voted, that 
any censures which should be passed by the court of Rome, 
on account of that law, should be entirely disregarded. 

Having proceeded too far to recede, Henry privately 
celebrated his marriage with Anne Boleyn, whom 
|Voo he had previously created marchioness of Pem- 
broke. Anne became pregnant soon after her mar- 
riage ; and- this event gave great satisfaction to the king. 
An act was made against all appeals to Rome in causes of 
matrimony and divorces ; and Henry, finding the new 
queen's pregnancy to advance, publicly owned his mar- 
riage, and informed Catherine that she was hereafter to 
be treated only as princess-dowager of Wales. 

The parliament enacted laws which were totally subver- 
sive of the papal authority in England. But the most im- 
portant law passed this session, was that which regulated 
the succession to the crown. The marriage of the king 
with Catherine was declared unlawful, void, and of no 
effect ; and the marriage with queen Anne was established 
and confirmed. The crown was appointed to descend to 
the issue of this marriage, and failing them, to the king's 
heirs forever. An oath likewise was enjoined to be taken 
in favour of this order of succession, under the penalty of 
imprisonment during the king's pleasure, and forfeiture 
•f goods and chattels, Fisher, bishop of Rochester, and 



tlENHY Vlli. k.85 

sir Tliomas More, were the only persons of note who 
scrupled the oath of succession : and the king ordered 
both to be indicted upon the statute, and committed pri- 
soners to the tower. 

The parliament being again assembled, conferred on the 
king the title of the only supreme head on earth of 
the church of England : and in this memorable act , Vo J 
they acknowledged his inherent power " to visit, 
and repress, redress, reform, order, correct, restrain, or 
amend, all errors, heresies, abuses, offences, contempts, 
and enormities, which fell under any spiritual authority 
or jurisdiction." They also declared it treason to attempt, 
imagine, or speak evil against the king, queen, or his 
heirs, or to endeavour depriving them of their dignities or 
titles. They gave him a right to all the annates and 
tithes of benefices, which had formerly been paid to the 
court of Rome. They attainted More and Fisher for mis- 
prision of treason ; and they completed the union of Eng- 
gland and Wales, by giving to that principality all the 
benefits of the English l^\rs. 

Though Henry had rejected the authority of the see of 
Rome, yet the idea of heresy still appeared detestable as 
well as formidable to that prince ; and for more reasons 
than one, he was indisposed to encourage the opinions of 
the reformers. Separate as he stood from the catholic 
church, and from the Roman pontiff, the head of it, he 
still valued himself on maintaining the catholic doctrine, 
and on guarding by fire and sword the imagiiied purity of 
his speculative principles. 

Henry's ministers and courtiers were of as motley a 
character as his conduct ; and seemed to waver, during 
this whole reign, between the ancient and the new religion. 
The queen, engaged by interest as well as inclination, fa- 
voured the cause of the reformers. Cromwell, who was 
created secretary of state, and who was daily advancing in 
the king's confidence, had embraced the same views ; and 
as he was a man of prudence and abilities, he was able, 
very effectually, though in a covert manner, to promote the 
late innovations. Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, 
had secretly adopted the protestant tenets : and he had 
gained Henry's friendship by his candour and sincerity ; 
virtues which he possessed in as eminent a degree as those 
times, equally distracted with faction and oppressed by 
16* 



186 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

tyranny, could easily permit. On the other hand, the 
duke of Norfolk adhered to the ancient faith ; and by his 
high rank, as well as by his talents both for peace and 
war, he had great authority in the king's council : Gardi-- 
ner, lately created bishop of Winchester, had enlisted 
himself in the same party; and the suppleness of his 
character, and dexterity of his conduct, had rendered him 
one of its principal supporters. 

In the mean time, the king, who held the balance be* 
tween the factions, was enabled, by the courtship paid him 
both by protestants and catholics, to assume an unbound- 
ed authority. The ambiguity of his conduct, though it 
kept the courtiers in awe, served in the main to encourage 
the protestant doctrine among his subjects. The books 
composed by the Lutherans were secretly imported into 
England, and made converts every where ; but a transla- 
tion of the Scriptures by Tindal, who, dreading the exer- 
tion of the king's authority, had fled to Antwerp, was justly 
deemed one of the most fatal blows to the established faith. 

Though Heniy neglected iiot to punish those who ad- 
hered to the protestant doctrine, which he deemed heresy, 
yet he knew that his most formidable enemies were the 
monks, who, having their immediate dependence on tho 
Roman pontiff, apprehended their own ruin to be the cer- 
tain consequence of abolishing his authority in England. 
Some of these were detected in a conspiracy ; and thr 
detection instigated the king to take vengeance on them. 
He suppressed three monasteries ; and finding that little 
clamour was excited by this act of power, he was more 
encouraged to lay his rapacious hands on the remainder. 
Meanwhile, he exercised punishments on individuals who 
were obnoxious to him. The parliament had made it 
treason to endeavour to deprive the king of his dignity or 
titles ; they had lately added to his other titles that of 
supreme head of the church ; it was inferred that to deny 
his supremacy was treason ; and many priors and ecclesi- 
astics lost their lives for this new species of guilt. Impel- 
led by his violent temper, and desirous of striking a terroi 
into the whole nation, Henry proceeded, by making ex- 
amples of Fisher and More, to consummate his tyranny. 

When the execution of Fisher and More was reported 
at Rome, Paul III., who had succeeded Clement VII. m 
the papal throne, excommunicated the king and his adhe 



HENRY Vlil* 187 

rents, depl'ived him of his crown, and gave his kingdom 
to any invader ; but he delayed the pubhcation of 
this sentence till the emperor, who was at that iro.^ 
time had pressed by the Turks and the protestant 
princes in Germany, should be in a condition to carry it 
into execution. However, an incident happened, which 
seemed to open the way for a reconciliation between Hen- 
ry and Charles. Queen Catherine died at Kimbolton iif" 
the county of Huntingdon, of a lingering illness, in the 
fiftieth year of her age. She wrote a very tender letter to 
the king, a little before she expired, in which she gave him 
the appellation of her most dear lord, king, and husband ; 
and she concluded with these words : '* I make this vow, 
that mine eyes desire you above all things." The king 
wdLS touched, even to the shedding of tears, by this last 
tender proof of Catherine's affection ; but queen Anne is 
said to have expressed her joy from the death of a rival 
beyond what decency or humanity could permit* 

The emperor thought that, as the demise of his aunt had 
removed all foundation of a personal animosity between 
him and Henry, it might not be impossible to detach him 
from the alliance of France ; but Henry was rendered in- 
different to the advances made by the emperor, both by 
his experience of the duplicity and insincerity of that 
monarch, and the ill success that he met with in his inva- 
sion of Provence. 

Henry, conscious of the advantages of his situation, 
determined to suppress the monasteries, and to put him- 
self in possession of their ample revenues, and for that 
purpose he delegated his supremacy to Cromwell, who 
was then secretary of state, and who employed commis- 
sioners to inquire into the conduct and deportment of the 
friars. If we may credit the reports of the commissioners, 
monstrous disorders were found in many of the religious 
houses. Henry had recourse to his usual instrument of 
power, the parliament ; and in order to prepare men for 
the innovations projected, the report of the visiters was 
published, and a general horror was endeavoured to be 
excited in the nation against institutions, which had long 
been the objects of the most profound veneration. An act 
was, therefore, passed, by which three hundred and seven- 
ty-six monasteries were suppressed, and their revenues, 
amounting to thirty-two thousand pounds a year, were 



188 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

granted to the king, together with their goods, chattels, 
and plate, computed at a hundred thousand pounds more. 
It does not appear that any opposition was made to this 
important law : so absolute was Henry's authority ! 

But while the supporters of the new religion were exult- 
ing in their prosperity, they met with a mortification in the 
fate of their patroness Anne Boleyn, who lost her life by 
the rage of her furious husband. She had l>een delivered 
of a dead son ; and Henry's extreme fondness for male 
issue was thereby disappointed. The king's love was 
transferred to Jane, daughter of sir John Seymour ; and he 
was determined to sacrifice every thing to the gratification 
of his new appetite. In a tilting at Greenwich, the queen 
happened to drop her handkerchief, an accident probably 
casual, but interpreted by the king as an instance of gal- 
lantry to some of her paramours. He immediately arrested 
several persons, in the number of whom was lord Roche- 
ford, the queen's brother ; and next day he ordered the 
queen to be carried to the tower. The queen and her 
brother were tried by a jury of peers ; and the chief evi- 
dence adduced against them was, that Rocheford had been 
seen to lean on her bed, before some company. Unas- 
sisted by counsel, the queen defended herself with great 
judgment and presence of mind ; and the spectators pro- 
nounced her entirely innocent. Judgment, however, was 
given against both her and Rocheford ; and when the 
dreadful sentence was pronounced, lifting up her hands to 
heaven, she exclaimed, *' O Father, O Creator, thou who 
art the way, the truth, and the life, thou knowest that 1 
have not deserved this fate." After being beheaded, her 
body was thrown into a common chest of elm-tree, made 
to hold arrows, and was buried in the tower. The inno- 
cence of Anne Boleyn cannot be reasonably called in ques- 
tion; and the king made the most efl^ectual apology for her, 
by marrying Jane Seymour the day after the execution. 
The parliament had the meanness to declare the issue of 
both his former marriages illegitimate ; and the crown 
was settled on the king's issue by Jane Seymour, or any 
subsequent wife ; and in case he should die without issue, 
he was empowered by his will to dispose of the crown. 

A convocation which sat at the same time with the par- 
liament, dete'-mined the standard of faith to consist in the 
Scriptures, and the three creeds, the Apostolic, Nicene; 



HENRY VIII. / 189 

and Athanasian ; auricular confession, and penance, m ere 
admitted ; but no mention was made of marriage, extreme 
unction, confirmation, or holy orders, as sacraments ; and 
in this omission the influence of the protestants appeared. 
The real presence, however, was asserted, conformably to 
the ancient doctrine ; while the terms of acceptance were 
established to be the merits of Chrisi, and the mercy and 
good pleasure of God, suitable to the new principles. 
These articles of belief were formed by the convocation, 
corrected by the king, and subscribed by every member of 
that society ; whilst not one, except Henry, adopted these 
doctrines and opinions. The expelled monks, wandering 
about the country, excited both the pity and compassion 
of men ; and as the ancient religion took hold of the popu- 
lace by powerful motives, suited to vulgar capacity, it was 
able, now that it was brought into apparent hazard, to 
raise the strongest zeal in its favour. The first rising was 
in Lincolnshire, and amounted to about twenty thousand 
men ; but the duke of Suffolk appearing at the head of 
some forces, with secret assurances of pardon, the popu- 
lace was dispersed, and a few of their leaders suffered. 
The northern rebels were more numerous and more for- 
midable than those of Lincolnshire. One Aske, a gentle- 
man, had taken the command of them, and possessed the 
art of governing the populace. Their enterprise they 
called the pilgrimage of grace ; they took an oath that 
their only motive proceeded from their love to God, their 
care of the king's person and issue, their desire of 
purifying the nobility, of restoring the church, and , Vo^ 
of suppressing heresy. The duke of Norfolk was 
appointed general of the king's forces against the rebels. 
Aske, with many other chiefs, was put to death ; and an 
amnesty was granted to the people. 

Not long after this prosperous issue, Henry's joy was 
crowned by the birth of a son, who was baptized by the 
name of Edward ; yet his happiness was not without alloy, 
for in two days after the queen died. The prince, not six 
days old, was created prince of Wales, duke of Cornwall, 
and earl of Chester ; sir Edward Seymour, the queen's 
brother, was raised to the dignity of earl of Hertford ; sir 
William Fitzwilliams, high admiral, was created earl of 
Southampton ; sir William Paulet, lord St. John ; sir John 
Russel, lord Russel. 



190 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Henry's rapacity, the consequence of his profusion, pro- 
duced the most entire destruction of the monasteries ; a 
new vi&itation of them was appointed ; and the abbots and 
monks were induced, in hopes of better treatment, to make 
a voluntary resignation of their houses. The whole reve- 
nue of these establishments amounted to one hundred and 
sixty-one thousand one hundred pounds. Great murmurs 
were every where excited, on account of these violent 
measures ; but Henry took an effectual method of inte- 
resting the nobility and gentry in the success of his mea- 
sures ; he either made a gift of the revenues of convents 
to his favourites and courtiers, or sold them at low prices, 
or exchanged them for other lands on very disadvanta- 
geous terms. The court of Rome saw this sacrilegious 
plunder with extreme indignation ; and Henry was fre- 
quently reproached with his resemblance to the emperor 
Julian. 

The king was so much governed by passion, that no- 
thing could have delayed his opposition against Rome, 
but some new objects of animosity. Though he had gra- 
dually been changing the tenets of that theological system 
in which he had been educated, yet he was no less dog- 
matical in the few articles which remained to him, than if 
the Avhole fabric had been entire and unshaken. The 
point on which he chiefly rested his orthodoxy happened 
to be the real presence ; and every departure from this 
principle, he held to be heretical and detestable. 

Lambert, a schoolmaster in London, drew up objections 
against the corporeal presence ; and when cited by Cran- 
mer and Latimer, instead of recanting, he ventured to ap- 
peal to the king. Henry, not displeased with an oppor- 
tunity of exerting his supremacy, and displaying his learn- 
ing, accepted the appeal. Public notice was given, that 
he intended to enter the lists with the schoolmaster ; scaf- 
folds were erected in Westminster-hall for the accommo- 
dation of the audience ; and Henry appeared on his throne, 
accompanied with all the ensigns of majesty, and with the 
prelates and temporal peers on each side of him. The 
bishop of Chichester opened the conference ; and the king 
asked Lambert, with a stern countenance, what his opinion 
was of Christ's corporeal presence in the sacrament of the 
altar. He afterwards pressed Lambert with arguments 
drawn from scripture and the schoolmen. The audience 



HENRY VIII. 191 

applauded the force of his reasoning and the extent of his 
erudition ; Cranmer seconded his proofs by some new 
topics ; Gardiner entered the lists as a support to Craj i- 
mer ; Tonstal took up the argument after Gardii.er ; 
Stokesley brought fresh aid to Tonstal ; six bishops iiiore 
appeared successively in the field after Stokesley ; and 
the disputation, if it deserves the name, was proclaimed 
for five hours ; till Lambert, fatigued, confounded, brow- 
beaten, and abashed, was at last reduced to silence. The 
king then proposed, as a concluding argument, this inte- 
resting question, whether he were resolved to live or to 
die 1 Lambert replied, that he cast himself wholly on his 
majesty's clemency ; the king told him, that he would be 
no protector of heretics ; and, therefore, if that were his 
final answer, he must expect to be committed to the flames. 
Cromwell, as vicegerent, pronounced the sentence against 
him. Lambert's executioners took care to make the suf- 
ferings of a man who personally opposed the king, as 
cruel as possible ; he was burned at a slow fire ; and when 
there appeared no end of his torments, some of the guards, 
more merciful than the rest, lifted him on their halberts, 
and threw him into the flames, where he was consumed. 
While they were employed in this friendly office, he cried 
aloud several times, none but Christ, none hut Christ ; and 
with these words he expired. 

Immediately after the death of Jane Seymour, Henry 
began to think of a new marriage ; and Cromwell proposed 
to him Anne of Cleves, whose father, the duke of that 
name, had great interest among the Lutheran princes. 
The marriage was at length concluded ; and Anne was 
sent over to England. The king, however, found 
her utterly destitute both of beauty and grace ; , *^^ 
swore that she was a great Flanders mare, and de- "^ 
clared that he never could possibly bear her any affection. 
His aversion to the queen secretly increased every day^^ 
and having at last broken all restraint, it prompted himflH^ 
once to seek the dissolution of a marriage so odious ^^^ 
him, and to involve his minister in ruin, who had been the 
innocent author of it. The fall of Cromwell was hastened 
by other causes. The catholics regarded him as the con- 
cealed enemy of their religion ; the protestants, observing 
his exterior concurrence with all the persecutions exercised 
against them, were inclined to bear him as little favour ; 



192 



HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 



and the king, who found that great clamour had on all 
hands arisen against the government, was not displeased 
to tiirow on Cromwell the load of public hatred, hoping 
by so easy a sacrifice to regain the affections of his sub- 
jects. Another more powerful cause, however, brought 
about an unexpected revolution in the ministry. The 
king had fixed his affections on Catharine Howard, niece 
to the duke of Norfolk; and, being determined to gratify 
this new passion, he could find no other expedient than a 
divorce from his present consort, to raise Catharine to his 
bed and throne. The duke, who had long been in enmity 
with the minister, obtained a commission from the king to 
arrest Cromwell at the council table, on an accusation of 
high treason, and to commit him to the tower. Immedi- 
ately after, a bill of attainder was framed against him ; 
and the house of peers thought proper, without trial, ex- 
amination or evidence, to condemn to death, on the most 
frivolous pretences, a man whom, a few days before, they 
had declared worthy to be vicar-general of the universe. 
The house of commons passed the bill, though not without 
some opposition. When brought to the place of execu- 
tion, Cromwell avoided all earnest protestations of his in 
nocence, and all complaints against the sentence pro- 
nounced upon him. He knew that Henry would resent 
on his son those symptoms of opposition to his will, and 
that his death alone would not terminate that monarch's 
vengeance. He was a man of prudence, industry, and 
abilities ; worthy of a better master and of a better fate 
Though raised to the summit of power from a low origin, 
yet he betrayed no insolence or contempt towards his in- 
feriors ; and he was careful to remember all the obliga- 
tions which, during his more humble fortune, he had owed 
to any one ; a circumstance that reflects the highest lustre 
on his character. 
-''The measures for divorcing Henry from Anne of Cleves, 
■^Pi'e carried on at the same time with the bill of attainder 
against Cromwell. Anne had formerly been contracted, 
by her father, to the duke of Lorraine ; and Heniy plead- 
ed this pre-contract as a ground of divorce. The convo- 
cation was satisfied with this reason, and solemnly annul- 
led the marriage between the king and queen ; the parlia- 
ment ratified the decision of the clergy ; and Anne, bles- 
sed with a happy insensibility of temper, accepted of a 




Henry VIIL 




Edward VL 



Mary, 



# 



HENRY VIII. 



/ 193 



settlement of three thousand pounds a year, and gave her 
consent to the divorce. 

An alhance contracted by Henry with the emperor, and 
his marriage with Catharine Howard, which followed soon 
after his divorce from Anne of Cleves, were regarded as 
favourable incidents to the catholics ; and the subsequent 
events corresponded to their expectations. A fierce per- 
secution commenced against the protestants ; but whilst 
the king exerted his violence against the protestants, he 
spared not the catholics, who denied his supremacy ; and 
hence it was said by a foreigner in England, that those 
who were against the pope were burned, and those who 
were for him were hanged. 

Henry had thought himself very happy in his new mar- 
riage : the agreeable person and disposition of Catharine 
had entirely captivated his affections ; and he made no 
secret of his devoted attachment to her. But the queen's 
conduct very little merited this tenderness : one Lascelles 
brought intelligence of her dissolute life to Cranmer ; and 
told him that Derham and Mannod^both of them seiTants 
to the old duchess of Norfolk, had been admitted to her 
bed. Three maids of the family were admitted into her 
secrets, and some of them had even passed the night in 
bed with her and her lovers. The queen being question- 
ed, denied her guilt ; but when informed that a full disco- 
very was made, she confessed that she had been criminal 
before marriage ; and only insisted, that she had never 
been false to the king's bed. But as there was evidence 
that one Colepepper had passed the night with her alone 
since her marriage ; and as it appeared that she had taken 
Derham, her old paramour, into her service, she seemed 
to deseiTe little credit in this asseveration ; and the king, 
besides, was not of a humour to make any difference be- 
tween these degrees of guilt. 

Henry convoked a parliament, the usual instrument of 
his tyranny; and the two houses, having received the 
queen's confession, voted a bill of attainder for treason 
against the queen, and the viscountess Rocheford, who had 
conducted her secret amours ; and in this bill Colepepper 
and Derham were also comprehended. At the same time, 
they passed a bill of attainder for misprision of treason 
against the old duchess of Norfolk, Catharine's grand- 
mother ; her uncle, lord William Howard, and his ladr, 
17 



194 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

together with the countess of Bridgewater, and nine per- 
sons more ; because they knew the queen's vicious course 
of hfe before her marriage, and had concealed it. Henry 
himself seems to have been sensible of the cruelty of this 
proceeding ; for he pardoned the duchess of Norfolk, and 
most of the others condemned for misprision of treason. 
However, to secure himself for the future, as well as his 
successors, from this fatal accident, he engaged the par- 
liament to pass a law, that if the kkig married any woman 
who had been incontinent, taking her for a true maid, she 
should be guilty of treason if she did not previously reveal 
her guilt to hira. The people made merry with this sin- 
gular enactment, and said, that the king must henceforth 
look out for a widow ; for no reputed maid would ever be 
persuaded to incur the penalty of the statute. After this, 
the queen was beheaded on Tower-hill, together with lady 
Rocheford. They behaved in a manner suitable to their 
dissolute life ; and as lady Rocheford was known to be 
the chief instrument in bringing Anne Boleyn to her un- 
timely end, she died •ipitied. 

James, king of the Scots, having incurred the resent- 
ment of Henry, a manifesto soon paved the way to hos- 
tilities ; and the duke of Norfolk, at the head of twenty 
thousand men, passed the Tweed at Berwick, and march- 
ed along the banks of the river as far as Kelso ; but on 
the approach of James, with thirty thousand men, the 
English repassed the river, and retreated into their own 
country. The king of Scots, inflamed with a desire of 
military glory, and of revenge on his invaders, gave the 
signal for pursuing them, and carrying the war into Eng- 
land ; but his nobility, who were in general disaffected on 
account of the preference which he had given to the clergy, 
opposed this resolution, and refused to attend him in his 
projected enterprise. Enraged at this mutiny, he reproacJi- 
ed them with cowardice, and threatened vengeance ; but 
he sent ten thousand men to the western borders, who 
entered England at Solway Frith ; and he himself followed 
them at a small distance. This army, however, was ready 
to disband, when a small body of English appeared, not 
exceeding five hundred men, under the command of Da- 
cres and Musgrave. A panic seized the Scots, who im 
mediately took to flight, and were pursued by the enemy. 
Few were killed in this rout, but a great many were taken 



HENRY VIII. 195 

prisoners, and some of the principal nobility, who were 
all sent to London. James, being naturally of a melan- 
cholic disposition, as well as endued with a high spirit, 
lost all command of his temper on this dismal occasion. 
Rage against his nobility, who he believed had betrayed 
him ; shame for a defeat by such unequal numbers ; regret 
for the past, fear of the future ; all these passions so 
wrought upon him, that he would admit of no consolation, 
but abandoned himself wholly to despair. His body was 
wasted by sympathy with his anxious mind ; and even his 
life began to be thought in danger. He had no issue liv- 
ing, and hearing that his queen was safely delivered, he 
asked, whether she had brought him a male or a female 
child. Being told the latter, he turned himself in his bed : 
*'. the crown came with a woman," said he, " and 
it will go with one ; many miseries await this poor -. V^^^ 
kingdom ; Henry will make it his own, cither by 
force of arms or by marriage." A few days after, he ex- 
pired, in the flower of his age. 

Henry was no sooner informedPof his victory, and of 
the death of his nephew, than he projected the scheme of 
uniting Scotland to his own dominions, by marrying his 
son Edward to the heiress of that kingdom. The Scottish 
nobles, who were his prisoners, readily assented to the 
proposal ; and after delivering hostages for their return, 
in case the intended nuptials should not be completed, 
they were all allowed to return to Scotland. A negotia- 
tion was commenced with sir Ralph Sadler, the English 
ambassador, for the marriage of the infant queen with the 
prince of Wales ; and equitable conditions were quickly 
agreed on ; but Beaton, the cardinal primate, who acted 
as minister to James, was able, by his intrigues, to con- 
found this measure. He represented the union with Eng- 
land as the certain ruin of the ancient religion ; and as 
soon as he found a war with that kingdom unavoidable, 
he immediately apphed to France for assistance during 
the present distresses of the Scottish nation. The influ- 
ence of the French in Scotland excited the resentment of 
Henry, who formed a close league with the emperor ; and 
war was declared against Francis by the allies. 

In order to obtain supplies for this projected war witli 
France, Henry summoned a new session of parliament, 
which granted hira a subsidy. About the same time, the 



196 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

king married Catharine Par, widow of Nevil, lord 
I V^q Latimer, a wOman of virtue, and somewhat inclined 
to the reformed doctrines. On the other hand, the 
king's league with the emperor seemed a circumstance no 
less favourable to the catholic party ; and thus matters re- 
mained still nearly balanced between the factions. 

While the winter season restrained Henry from military 
operations, he summoned a new parliament, which, after 
declaring the prince of Wales, or any of the king's male 
issue, first heirs to the crown, restored the two princesses, 
Mary and Elizabeth, to their right of succession. Such, 
however, was the caprice of the king, that while he open- 
ed the way for these princesses to ascend the throne, he 
would not allow the acts to be reversed which declared 
them illegitimate ! 

Henry sent a fleet and army to invade Scotland. The 
troops were disembarked near Leith ; and, sifter dispers- 
ing a small body which opposed them, they took that tow» 
without resistance, and then marched to Edinburgh, thp 
gates of which were ^on beaten down ; and the English 
first pillaged, and then set fire to the city. The earl ot 
Arran, who was regent, and Beaton the cardinal, were 
not prepared to oppose so gi'eat a force ; and they fled to 
Stirling. The English marched eastward, laid waste the 
whole country, burned and destroyed Haddington and 
Dunbar, and then retreated into England. 

This incursion inflamed, without subduing the spirit of 
the Scots ; but Henry recalled his troops, in consequence 
of his treaty with the emperor, by which those two princes 
had agreed to invade France with above one hundred 
thousand men. The city of Boulogne was treacherously 
surrendered to Henry ; but the emperor, after taking seve- 
ral places, concluded a peace with Francis, at Crepy, 
where no mention was made of England ; and Henry, 
finding himself obliged to raise the siege of Montreuil, 
returned into England. This campaign served to the 
populace as matter of great triumph ; but all men of sense 
concluded that the king ha 1, as in all his former military 
enterprises, obtained, at a jreat expense an unimportant 
acquisition. 

The war with Scotland, meanwhi^ was conducted 
feebly, and with various success ; and the war with 

^* ^' France was not distinguished by any memorable 
event. The great expense of these two wars main- 



HENRY VIII. 197 

tained by Henry, obliged him to summon a new parlia- 
ment. The commons granted him a subsidy, payable in 
two years, of two shilHngs a pound on land ; the spiritua- 
lity voted him six shillings a pound. But the parliament, 
apprehensive lest more demands should be made upon 
them, endeavoured to save themselves by a very extraor- 
dinary liberality of other people's property. By one vote 
they bestowed on the king all the revenues of the univer- 
sities, as well as of the chauntries, free chapels, and hospi- 
tals. Henry was pleased with this concession, as it in- 
creased his power ; but he had no intention to rob learn- 
ing of all her endowments ; and he soon took care to in- 
form the universities that he meant not to touch their 
revenues. Thus these ancient and celebrated establish- 
ments owe their existence to the generosity of the king, 
not to the protection of this servile parliament. 

Henry employed in military preparations the money 
granted by parliament ; and he sent over the earl 
of Hertford and lord Lisle, the admiral, to Qalais, .. '^.A 
with a body of nine thousand men, two-thirds of 
which consisted of foreigners. Some skirmishes of small 
moment ensued with the French ; but as no hopes of any 
considerable progress could be entertained by either party, 
both came to an accommodation. Commissioners met at 
Campe, a small place between Ardres and Guisnes ; and 
it was agreed, that Henry should retain Boulogne during 
eight years, or till the former debt due by Francis should 
be paid. This debt was settled at two millions of livres, 
besides a claim of five hundred thousand livres, which was 
afterwards to be adjusted. Francis took care to compi'e- 
hend Scotland in the treaty. Thus all that Henry ob- 
tained by a war which cost him above one million three 
hundred and forty thousand pounds sterling, was a bad 
and a chargeable security for a debt which was not a 
third of the value. 

The king had now leisure to attend to domestic affairs. 
He was prevailed on to permit the litany to be celebrated 
in the vulgar tongue ; and Cranmer, taking advantage of 
Gardiner's absence on an embassy to the emperor, at- 
tempted to draw him into farther innovations ; but Gardi- 
ner wrote to Heniy, and retarded for some time the pro- 
jects of Cranmer. The catholics took hold of the king 
by his passion for orthodoxy ; and they represented to 
17* 



193 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

him, that if liis laudable zeal for enforcing the truth met 
with no better success, it was altogether owing to the pri- 
mate, whose example and encouragement were, in reality, 
tlie secret supports of heresy. Henry, seeing the point at 
which they aimed, feigned a compliance, and desired the 
council to make inquiry into Cranmer's conduct. Every 
body now considered the primate as lost ; and when ad- 
mitted into the council-chamber, he was told, that they 
had determined to send him to the tower. Cranmer said, 
that he appealed to the king himself; and finding his ap- 
peal disregarded, he produced a ring, which Henry had 
given him as a pledge of favour and protection. The 
council were confounded ; and when they came before 
the king, he reproved them in the severest terms ; and 
told them that he was well acquainted with Cranmer's 
merit, as well as with their malignity and envy. 

But though Henry's partial favour for Cranmer ren- 
dered fruitless all accusations against him, his pride and 
peevishness, Irritated by his declining state of health, in-, 
duced him to punish with severity every other person who 
differed from him in opinion. Ann Ascue, a young lady 
of merit as well as beauty, who was connected with the 
queen herself, was accused of dogmatizing on the real 
presence ; and, after being subjected to the torture in the 
most barbarous manner, she was sentenced to be burned 
alive, with four others condemned for the same crime. 
When they were all tied to the stake, they refused the 
pardon that was offered on condition of recantation ; and 
they saw with tranquility the executioner kindle the flames 
that w'ere to consume them. 

Though the secrecy and fidelity of Ann Ascue saved 
the queen from this peril, yet that princess soon after fell 
into a new danger, from which she narrowly escaped. 
Henry's favourite topic of conversation was theology ; and 
Catharine, whose good sense enabled her to discourse on 
any subject, was frequently engaged in the argument ; 
and, being secretly inclined to the principles of the refor- 
mers, she unwarily betrayed too much of her mind on these 
occasions. Henry, highly provoked that she should pre- 
sume to differ from him, complained of her obstinacy to Gar- 
diner, who gladly laid hold of the opportunity to inflame 
the quarrel ; and the king, hurried on by his own impetuous 
temper, and encom*aged by his bigoted counsellors, went 



HENliY VllJ. IQ 199 

so far as to order articles of impeachment to be drawn up 
against his consort. By some means this important paper 
fell into the hands of one of the queen's friends, who im- 
mediately carried the inteUigence to her. Sensible of the 
extreme danger to which she was exposed, she paid her 
usual visit to the king, who entered on the subject most 
familiar to him, and who seemed to challenge her to an 
argument in divinity. She gently declined the conversa- 
tion, and remarked, that such profound speculations were 
ill-suited to the natural imbecility of her sex. Woman, she 
said, by their creation, were made subject to men. It be- 
longed to the husband to choose principles for his wife ; the 
wife's duty was, in all cases, to adopt implicitly the senti- 
ments of her husband ; and as to herself, it was doubly her 
duty, being blest with a husband who was qualified by his 
judgment and learning to choose principles not only for his 
own family, but for the most wise and knowing of every 
nation. " Not so, by St. Mary," replied the king ; " you 
are now become a doctor, Kate ; and bettq§ fitted to give 
than receive instructions." She meekly replied, that she 
was sensible how little she was entitled to these praises ; 
that though she usually declined not any conversation, how- 
ever sublime, when proposed by his majesty, she well knew 
that her conceptions could serve to no other purpose than 
to give him a little momentary amusement ; that she found 
the conversation apt to languish, when not revived by 
some opposition, and she had ventured sometimes to feign 
a contrariety of sentiments, in order to give him the plea- 
sure of refuting her ; and that she also purposed, by this 
innocent artifice, to engage him on topics whence she had 
observed, by frequent experience, that she reaped profit 
and instruction. "And is it so, sweetheart?" replied the 
king ; " then we are perfect friends again." He embraced 
her with great affection, and sent her away with assurances 
of his protection and kindness. 

The reputation which the duke of Norfolk had acquired 
in war, his high rank, and his influence as the head of the 
catholic party, rendered that nobleman obnoxious to Hen- 
ry, who foresaw danger, during his son's minority, from 
the attempts of so potent a subject. His son, the earl of 
Surrey, had distinguished himself by every accomplish- 
ment which became a scholar, a courtier, and a soldier : 
but having declined the hand of the daughter of the earl 



7 



200 HISTORY OF JENCJLAxXD. 

of Hertford, and even waived every other proposal of mar- 
riage, Hemy imagined that he entertained the design of 
espousing tlie lady Mary. Actuated by those suspicions, 
the king gave private orders to arrest Norfolk and Surrey, 
who, on the same day, were confined in the tower. Surrey 
was accused of entertaining in his family some Italians, 
who were suspected to be spies, of corresponding with car- 
dinal Pole, and of quartering on his escutcheon the arms 
of Edward the Confessor, a practice which had been jus- 
tified by the authority of the heralds. Notwithstanding 
his eloquent and spirited defence, a venal juiy condemned 
him for high treason ; and their sentence was soon 
after executed upon him. The innocence of Nor- ^ V . ^^ 
folk was, if possible, still more apparent than that 
of his son ; yet the house of peers, without trial or evidence, 
passed a bill of attainder against him, and sent it down to 
the commons. The king was now approaching fast 
towards his end, and fearing lest Norfolk should escape 
him, he sent ^lessage to the commons to expedite the bill. 
The obsequious commons obeyed his directions ; and the 
king, having affixed the royal assent to the bill by com- 
missioners, issued orders for the execution of Norfolk on 
the morning of the twenty-ninth of January. But news 
being carried to the tower that the king himself had expi- 
red the preceding night, the lieutenant deferred obeying 
the warrant ; and it was not thought advisable by the 
council to begin a new reign with the death of the greatest 
nobleman in the kingdom, who had been condemned by a 
sentence so unjust and tyrannical. 

The king's health had long been in a declining state ; 
but for several days, all those near him plainly saw his end 
approaching, yet no one durst inform him of his condition. 
At last sir Anthony Denny ventured to disclose to him the 
fatal secret, and exhorted him to prepare for the event. 
He expressed his resignation, and desired that Cranmer 
might be sent for ; but before the prelate arrived he was 
speechless, though he still seemed to retain his senses. 
Cranmer desired him to give some sign of his dying in the 
faith of Christ: he squeezed the prelate's hand, and im- 
mediately expired, after a reign of thirty-seven years and 
nine months ; and in the fifty-sixth year of his age. 

The king had made his will near a month before his de- 
mise, in which he confirmed the destination of parliament, 



EDWARD VI. 201 

by leaving tlie crown first to prince Edwaid, then to the 
lady Mary, next to the lady Elizabeth. The two princesses 
he obliged, under the penalty of forfeiting their title to the 
crown, not to marry without consent of the council, which 
he appointed for the government of his minor son. 

A catalogue of this prince's vices would comprehend 
many of the worst qualities incidental to human nature: 
violence, cruelty, profusion, rapacity, injustice, obstinacy, 
arrogance, bigotry, and presumption ; yet, he was sincere, 
open, gallant, liberal, and capable, at least, of a temporary 
friendship and attachment. Notwithstanding his cruelty 
and extortion, he seems to have possessed to the last, in 
some degree, the love and affection of his people. Indeed, 
his exterior qualities were advantageous, and fit to capti- 
vate the multitude ; and his magnificence and personal 
bravery rendered him illustrious in vulgar eyes. 



CHAP. XI. 

The Reigns of Edward VI. , and Mary, 
Edward, at his accession, was little more than nine years 
of age ; and as his majority was fixed at the completion of 
his eighteenth year, his father had appointed sixteen 
executors, to whom, during the minority, he intrust- , '^,.1 
ed the government of the kingdom. Among these 
were Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury ; lord Wriothes- 
ley, chancellor ; lord St. John, great master ; lord Russel, 
privy-seal ; the earl of Hertford, chamberlain ; viscount 
Lisle, admiral ; Tonstal, bishop of Durham ; with other 
officers of state, and two or three private persons. To 
these executors, with whom was intrusted the regal au- 
thority, were associated twelve counsellors, who possessed 
no immediate power, and could only assist with their ad- 
vice when any aff*air was laid before them. 

No sooner were the executors and counsellors met, than 
it was suggested that the government would lose its digni- 
ty, for want of some head to represent the royal majesty. 
Though this was a departure from the late king's will, yet 
the measure was carried ; and the choice fell of course on 
the earl of Hertford, the king's maternal uncle. In their 
next measure, they showed a gi-eat deference to Henry's 
intentions. Hertford was created duke of Somerset, 
mareschal and lord treasurer ; Wriothesley, earl of South- 



202 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

ampton ; the earl of Essex, marquis of Northampton ; 
viscount Lisle, earl of Warwick ; sir Thomas Seymour, 
lord Seymour of Sudley, and admiral ; and sir Richard 
Rich, sir William Willoughby, and sir Edward Sheffield, 
were raised to the dignity of barons. 

The earl of Southampton had always been engaged in 
an opposite party to Somerset ; and the latter taking ad- 
vantage of some illegal proceedings of which the former 
was guilty, the council declared that Southampton had for- 
feited the great seal, that a fine should be imposed upon 
him, and that he should be confined to his own house du- 
ring pleasure. The removal of Southampton, however, 
did not satisfy the ambition of Somerset. He procured a 
patent from the young king, by which he entirely over- 
turned the will of Henry VHI., and produced a total revo- 
lution in the government. He named himself protector, 
with full regal power, and appointed a council, consisting 
of all the former counsellors, and all the executors, except 
Southampton, reserving a power of naming any other 
counsellors at pleasure, and of consulting with such only 
as he thought proper. The protector and his council 
were likewise empowered to act at discretion, and to exe- 
cute whatever they deemed for the public service, without 
incurring any penalty or forfeiture whatsoever. 

Somerset had long been regarded as a secret partisan 
of the reformers ; and he took care that all persons intrust- 
ed with the king's education should be attached to the 
same principles. In his schemes for advancing the refor- 
mation, he had always recourse to the counsels of Cran- 
mer, who, being a man of moderation and prudence, was 
averse to all violent changes. A visitation was made of 
all the dioceses in England, by a mixture of clergy and 
laity ; and the chief purport of their instructions was, be- 
sides correcting immoralities and irregularities in the cler- 
gy, to abolish the ancient superstitions, and to bring the 
discipline and worship somewhat nearer the practice of the 
reformed churches. The person that opposed, with great- 
est authority, these advances towards reformation, was 
Gardiner, bishop of Worcester, who, though he had not 
obtained a place in the council of regency, on account of 
late disgusts which he had given to Henry, was entitled by 
his age, experience, and capacity, to the highest trust and 
confidence of his party. He represented the periks of 



EDWARD VI. 203 

perpetual innovations, and the necessity of adhering to 
some system. For this freedom he was sent to the Fleet- 
prison, and treated with some severity. 

In Scotland, one Wishart, a gentleman by birth, and 
celebrated for the purity of his morals, and his extensive 
learning, employed himself with great success in preach- 
ing again^st the ancient superstitions. Beaton, the cardi- 
nal primate, resolving to strike terror into all other inno- 
vators, by the punishment of so distinguished a preacher, 
caused him to be arrested. The unhappy man was con- 
demned to the flames for heresy, and suffered with the 
usual patience. The disciples of this martyr, enraged at 
the cruel execution, formed a conspiracy against the car- 
dinal, who was assassinated soon after the death of Wish- 
art. The assassins, being reinforced by their friends, to 
the number of a hundred and forty persons, prepared them- 
selves for the defence of the cardinal's palace, and craved 
the assistance of Henry, who promised to take them under 
his protection. 

To fulfil this promise, and to execute the project which 
the late king had recommended with his dying breath, the 
protector levied an army of eighteen thousand men, with 
which he invaded Scotland. The Scottish army, double 
in number to that of the English, posted themselves on 
advantageous ground, guarded by the banks of the Eske, 
about four miles from Edinburgh. Having reconnoitered 
their camp, Somerset found it difficult to make an attempt 
upon it with any probability of success. He wrote, there- 
fore, to Arran, the governor of Scotland, and offered to 
evacuate the kingdom, provided the Scots would stipulate 
not to contract the queen to any foreign prince, but to de- 
tain her at home till she reached the age of choosing a 
husband for, herself. The Scots rejected the demand, and 
quitting their camp, advanced into the plain, with the hope 
of cutting off the retreat of the English. Somerset, pleased 
to behold this movement of the Scottish army, ranged his 
troops in order of battle. The Scots were defeated with 
the loss of about ten thousand slain, and fifteen hundred 
taken prisoners ; while not more than two hundred of the 
English fell in this engagement. This action was called 
;he battle of Pinkney, from a nobleman's seat of that 
name in the neighbourhood. 

Somerset was desirous of returning to England, where 



204 HISTORY OP KNGLAND. 

be heard that some counsellors, and even his own brother, 
the admiral, were carrying on cabals against his autliority. 
On his arrival, he summoned a parliament, in which all 

laws were repealed that extended the crime of 
,1.Q treason beyond the statute of the twenty-fifth of 

Edward III. ; all laws enacted during the late 
reign extending the crime of felony ; all the former laws 
against Lollardy or heresy, together with the statute of the 
six articles. By these and other repeals, some dawn, 
both of civil and religious liberty, began to appear to the 
people. Heresy, however, was still a capital crime by the 
common law, and was subjected to the penalty of burning. 
Only there remained no precise standard by which thai 
crime could be defined or determined ; a circumstance 
which might either be advantageous or hurtful to public 
security, according to the disposition of the judges. 

The greater the progress that was made towards a re- 
formation in England, the further did the protector find 
himself from all prospect of completing the union w)th 
Scotland ; and the queen-dowager, as well as the clergy, 
became the more averse to all alliance with a nation which 
had so far departed from ancient principles. The hostile 
attempts, too, which the late king and the protector had 
made against Scotland, had sei^ved only to inspire the 
Scottish people with the utmost aversion to a union. The 
queen-dowager, finding these sentiments prevail, called a 
parliament, in which it was proposed that the young queen 
should be sent to France. Accordingly, the governor re- 
ceived a pension of twelve thousand livres a year, and the 
title of duke of Chatelrauk ; and Mary embarked on board 
some French vessels, arrived at Brest, whence she was con- 
ducted to Paris, and soon after betrothed to the dauphin. 

The mortification of Somerset, on the failure of his pro- 
ject for a union with Scotland, was increased by the in- 
trigues of his own family. His brother, lord Seymour, a 
man of insatiable ambition and great abilities, by his flat- 
tery and address, had so insinuated himself into the good 
graces of the queen-dowager, that, forgetting her usual 
pmdence and decency, she married him so immediately 
upon the demise of the late king, that had she soon proved 
pregnant, it might have been doubtful to which husband 
the child belonged. The credit and riches of this alliance 
supported the- ambition of the admiral ; but gave umbrage 



EJ)WARD VI. 205 

1.0 the duchess of Somerset, who, uneasy that the younger 
brother's wife should have the precedency, employed all 
her influence with her husband, first to create, then to 
widen, the breach between the two brothers. 

The first attempt of the admiral was a direct attack 
upon his brother's authority, by procuring from the young 
king a letter to the parliament, desiring that Seymour 
might be appointed his governor; but, finding himself 
prevented in his design by the parliament, he was obliged 
to submit, and to desire a reconciliation v/ith his brother. 
His ambition, however, could not be easily checked. His 
spouse, the queen-dowager, died in child-bed ; but so far 
from regarding this event as an obstacle to his aspiring 
views, he made his addresses to the lady Elizabeth ; and 
as Henry had excluded his daughters from all hopes of 
succession, if they married without the consent of his ex- 
ecutors, which Seymour could never hope to obtain, he is 
supposed to have aimed at effecting his purpose by the 
most criminal means. He had brought over to his party 
many of the principal nobility; and it was supposed, that 
he could on occasion muster an army of ten thousand 
men, composed of his servants, tenants, and retainers. 
He had already provided arms for their use ; and having 
engaged in his interests sir John Sharington, a corrupt 
man, master of the mint at Bristol, he flattered himself 
that money would not be wanting. Somerset was well 
apprised of all these alarming circumstances, and endea- 
voured by the most friendly expedients, by intreaty, reason, 
and even by heaping new favours upon his brother, to 
make him desist from his dangerous councils ; but finding 
all endeavours ineffectual, he was easily persuaded, by the 
earl of Warwick, to deprive him of the office of admiral, 
and to commit him to the towel*. 

Some of his accomplices were also taken into custody ; 
and three privy counsellors being sent to examine them, 
made a report that they had met with very full and impor- 
tant discoveries. Yet still the protector suspended the 
blow, and showed a reluctance to ruin his brother ; but as 
Seymour made no other answer to all his friendly offers, 
than menaces and defiances, he ordered a charge to be 
drawn up against him, consisting of thirty-three articles 
and the whole to be laid before the privy council. It v? 
pretended, that every particular was so incontestibly pro- 
XS 



•306 ./ HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

ved, both by witnesses and his own hand- writing, that 
there was no room for doubt; yet did the council think 
proper to go in a body to the tower, in order more fully 
to examine the prisoner. We shall indeed conclude, if we 
carefully examine the charge, that many of the articles 
were general, and scarcely capable of any proof; many 
of them, if true, susceptible of a more favourable interpre- 
tation ; and that though, on the w^iole, Seymour appears 
to have been a dangerous subject, he had not advanced 
far in those treasonable projects imputed to him. 

But the administration had at that time an dasy instru- 
ment of vengeance in the parliament ; and &. session being 
held, Seymour was proceeded against by bill of attainder. 
The bill was passed in the upper house without undergo- 
ing any objections ; but in the house of commons, some 
members objected against the whole method of proceeding 
by bill of attainder passed in absence, and insisted that 
a formal trial should be given to every man before his 
condemnation. At length, however, the bill passed ; and 
the sentence was soon after executed, and the pri- 
^'r?Q soner beheaded on Tower-hill. The warrant was 
signed by Somerset himself, who was much blamed 
on account of the violence of these proceedings. 

In this session, the translation of the liturgy, as well as 
of the scriptures, into the vulgar tongu^ was estabhshed by 
parliament ; and an act was also passed, permitting the mar- 
riage of priests, who had hitherto been enjoined celibacy. 

Scarcely any institution can be considered less favoura- 
ble to the interests of mankind, than that of monks and 
friars. The convents, however, were a sure resource to 
the poor and indigent ; and though the alms which they 
distributed gave too much encouragement to idleness, yet 
the suppression of them was felt and regretted. These 
orievances were at this time heightened by other causes. 
The arts of manufacture were much more advanced in 
other European countries than in England ; and even in 
Eno-land these arts had made greater progress than tlie 
knowledge of agriculture. A great demand arose for wooi 
both abroad and at home ; pasturage was found more pro- 
fitable than unskilful tillage ; whole estates were laid waste 
by enclosures ; and a decay of people, as w^ell as a dimi- 
nution of the former plenty, was remarked in the kingdom. 
The general increase also of gold and silver in Europe, 



EDWARD VI. , 207 

after the discovery of the West-Indies, had a tendency to in- 
flame these complaints. The growing demand in the more 
commercial countries had heightened every where the 
price of commodities, which could easily be transported 
thither ; but in England, the labour of men, who could 
not so easily change their habitation, still remained nearly 
at the ancient rates ; and the poor complained that they 
could no longer gain a subsistence by their industry ; 
which, as it was difficult for them to shake off their former 
habits of indolence, they were, in fact, unwilling to employ. 

Loud complaints were heard in every part of England ; 
and these were succeeded by acts of open violence. The 
rising was simultaneous, as if a general conspiracy had 
been formed by the people. The commotions in Hamp- 
shire, Sussex, Kent, and some other counties, were quiet- 
ed by mild expedients ; but the disorders in Devonshire 
and Norfolk threatened more dangerous consequences. 
In Devonshire, the rebels, who amounted to ten thousand, 
were attacked and defeated near Exeter by lord Russel, 
who had been sent to disperse them. In Norfolk, the in- 
surgents amounted to twenty thousand, and were headed 
by one Ket, a tanner. The protector affected popularity, 
and cared not to appear in person against the rebels ; he 
therefore sent the earl of Warwick, at the head of six 
thousand men, levied for the wars against Scotland ; by 
which means he afforded his mortal enemy an opportunity 
of increasing his reputation and character. Warwick, 
having tried some skirmishes with the rebels, at last made 
a general attack upon them, and put them to flight. Two 
thousand fell in the action and pursuit ; and Ket was 
hanged at Norwich. 

But though these insurrections were quickly subdued, 
they were attended with serious consequences to the fo- 
reign interests of the nation. The Scots took the fortress 
of Broughty, and compelled the English to evacuate 
Haddington ; and the French recovered all the conquests 
which Henry had made on the continent, with th3 excep- 
tion of Boulogne. 

Somerset, despairing of the assistance of the emperor, 
was inclined to conclude a peace with France and Scot- 
land ; but his enemies in the council opposed all proposals 
for a pacification. Lord St. John, president of the coun- 
cil, the earls of Warwick, Southampton, and Arundel, 



2(18 J mSTORY OP ENGLAND. 

with five members more, met at Ely-house ; and assuming 
to themselves the whole power of the council, began to act 
independently of the protector, whom they represented as 
the author of every public grievance and misfortune. They 
wrote letters to the chief nobility and gentry of England, 
informing them of the present measures, and requiring 
their assistance ; they sent for the mayor and aldermen of 
London, and enjoined them to obey their order, without 
regard to any contrary orders which they might receive 
from the duke of Somerset. They laid the same injunc- 
tions on the lieutenant of the tower, who expressed his 
resolution to comply with them. Other lords and gentle- 
men joined the malcontent counsellors. 

Somerset was sent to the tower; and articles of indict- 
ment were preferred against him. He was prevailed on 
to confess on his knees, before the council, all the arti- 
cles of charge against him ; and he even subscribed this 
confession. The paper was given into parliament, who, 
after sending a committee to examine him, and hear him 
acknowledge it to be genuine, passed a vote by which they 
deprived him of all his offices, and fined him two thousand 
pounds a year in land. Lord St. John was created trea- 
surer in his place, and Warwick earl-marshal. The pro- 
secution against him was carried no farther ; and his fine 
was remitted by the king. Warwick, thinking that he 
was now sufficiently humbled, readmitted him into the 
council, and even agreed to an alliance between their 
families, by the marriage of his own son, lord Dudley, 
with the lady .Tane Seymour, daughter of Somerset. 
When Warwick and the council of regency began to ex- 
ercise their power, they found themselves embar- 
, 1 -^ rassed by the wars with France and Scotland : and 
therefore a pacification was efi*ected, by which 
France bound herself to pay four hundred thousand crowns 
for the restitution of Boulogne ; and the English agi-eed 
to restore to Scotland Lauder and Douglas, and to demo- 
lish the fortresses of Roxburgh and Eymouth. 

In all other respects, than an intention of marrying the 
king to a daughter of the king of France, a violent 
^'['1'% persecutor of the protestants, the council was 
steady in promoting the reformation. Several pre- 
lates still adhered to the Romish communion, and were 
deprived of their sees on pretence of disobedience. The 



EDWARD VI. 209 

princess Mary declared herself willing to endure death 
rather than relinquish the ancient rehgion ; and Edward, 
who had been educated in a violent abhorrence of the 
mass and other popish rites, lamented his sister's obstina- 
cy, and bewailed his fate in suffering her to continue in 
such an abominable mode of worship. 

Various schemes attempted by the council for promoting 
industry were likely to prove abortive, by the ambition of 
Warwick. The last earl of Northumberland died without 
issue ; and as sir Thomas Piercy, his brother, had been 
attainted in the late reign, Warwick procured a grant of 
the estate, with the title of Duke of Northumberland. 

Finding that Somerset, though degraded from his dig- 
nity, still enjoyed a considerable share of popularity, 
Northumberland determined to ruin the man whom he re- 
garded as the chief obstacle to the attainment of his am- 
bition. The alliance between the two families had produ- 
ced no cordial union. Nortliumberland secretly gained 
many of the friends and seiTants of that unhappy noble- 
man ; and the unguarded Somerset often broke out into 
menacing expressions, which his tieacLerous confidants 
carried to his enemy. 

In one night, the duke of Somerset, lord Grey, David 
and John Seymour, Hammond and Neudigate, two of the 
duke's servants, sir Ralph Vane, and sir Thomas Palmer, 
were arrested, and committed to custody. Next day the 
duchess of Somerset, with her favourites, and some others, 
were thrown into prison. Sir Thomas Palmer, who had 
all along acted as a spy upon Somerset, accused him of 
having formed a design of raising an insurrection in the 
north ; and that he had once projected the murder of 
Northumberland, Northampton, and Pembroke. Somer- 
set was brought to his trial before the marquis of Win- 
chester, created high-steward. Twenty-seven peers com- 
posed the jury, among whom were Northumberland, Pem- 
broke, and Northampton, whom decency should have hin- 
dered from acting as judges in the trial of a man that ap- 
peared to be their capital enemy. S(»merset was accused 
of high-treason on account of the projected insurrections, 
and of felony in laying a design to murder privy- counsel- 
lors. The proof seems to have been lame in regard to the 
treasonable part of the charge ; but the prisoner himself 
confessed that he had expressed his intention of murdering 
18* 



*ilO " I ,e HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Northumberland and the other lords ; and he was accord • 
ingly condemned to death for felony. 

Care had been taken to prepossess the young king 
against his uncle ; and lest he should relent, no access 
was given to any of Somerset's friends. The prisoner was 
brought to the scaffold on Tower-hill, amidst great crowds 
of spectators, who bore him such sincere kindness 
,'^_(^ that they entertained to the last moment the fond 
hopes of his pardon. Many of them rushed in to 
dip their handkerchiefs in his blood, which they long pre- 
served as a precious relick ; and some of them soon after, 
when Northumberland met with a like doom, upbraided 
him with this cruelty, and displayed to him these symbols 
of his crime. 

The day after the execution of Somerset, a session of 
parliament was held, in which farther advances were 
made towards the establishment of the reformation. The 
new liturgy was authorised ; and penalties were enacted 
against all those who absented themselves from public 
worship. 

Tonstal, bishop of Durham, less eminent for the dignity 
of his see, than for his own personal merit, had opposed, 
by his vote and authority, all innovations in religion ; but 
as soon as they were enacted, he had always submitted 
from a sense of duty, and had conformed to eveiy theolo- 
gical system which had been established. The general 
regard paid to his character had protected him from any 
severe treatment during the administration of Somerset ; 
but when Northumberland gained the ascendant, he was 
thrown into prison ; and as that rapacious nobleman had 
formed a design of seizing the revenues of the see of Dur- 
ham, and of acquiring to himself a principality in the 
northern counties, he was resolved to deprive Tonstal of 
his bishopric. A bill of attainder, therefore, on pretence 
of misprision of treason, was introduced into the house of 
peers against that prelate, and passed with slight opposi- 
tion ; but when the bill was sent down to the commons, 
they required that witnesses should be examined, that 
Tonstal should be allowed to defend himself, and that he 
should be confronted with his accusers. These demands 
being refused, they rejected the bill. 

This equity, so unusual in the parliament during that age, 
was ascribed by Northumberland to the prevalence of So- 



EDWARD VI. 211 

merset's faction ; and it was therefore resolved to dissolve 
the parliament, and to summon a new one. This expedi- 
ent answered Northumberland's expectations. As Ton- 
stal had, in the interval, been deprived of his bishopric in 
an arbitrary manner, by the sentence of lay-commissioners 
appointed to try him, the see of Durham was by act of 
parliament divided into two bishoprics, which had certain 
portions of tlie revenue assigned them. The regalties of 
the see, which included the jurisdiction of a count pala- 
tine, were given by the king to Northumberland. 

The young prmce showed a disposition to frugality ; 
but such had been the rapacity of the courtiers, that the 
crown owed about three hundred thousand pounds ; and 
as the king's health was declining very fast, the emptiness 
of the exchequer was an obstacle to the ambitious projects 
of Northumberland. That nobleman represented to Ed- 
ward, that his two sisters, Mary and Elizabeth, had been 
declared illegitimate by act of parliament ; that the queen 
of Scots stood excluded by the late king's will ; that the 
certain consequence of his sister Mary's succession, or that 
of the queen of Scots, was the abolition of the protestant 
religion ; that the succession next devolved on the mar- 
chioness of Dorset, elder daughter of the French queen, 
and the duke of Suffolk ; that the next heir of the mar- 
chioness was the lady Jane Grey, a lady of the most ami- 
able character, accomplished by the best education, both in 
literature and religion, and every way worthy of a crown ; 
and that even if her title by blood were doubtful, which 
there was no just reason to pretend, the king was posses- 
sed of the same power that his father enjoyed, and might 
leave her the crown by letters patent These reasonings 
made impression on the young prince ; and, above ail, his 
zealous attachment to the protestant religion made him 
apprehend the consequences, if so bigoted a catholic as 
his sister Mary should succeed to the throne. And though 
he bore an affection to the lady Elizabeth, who was liable 
lo no such objection, means were found to persuade him 
that he could not exclude the one sister on account of ille- 
gitimacy, without also excluding the other. 

Northumberland, finding that his arguments were likely 
to operate on the king, began to prepare the other parts 
of his scheme. Two sons of the duke of Suffolk, by a 
second marriage, having died this season of the sweating 



*J1^ " HISTORY OF ENGLAND, 

sickness, that title was extinct; and Northumberland en 
gaged the king to bestow it on the marquis of Dorset. By 
means of this favour, and of others which he conferred 
upon him, he persuaded the new duke of Suffolk and the 
duchess to give their daughter, the lady Jane, in marriage 
to his fourth son, the lord Guildford Dudley. In order to 
fortify himself by farther alliances, he negotiated a mar- 
riage between the lady Catharine Grey, second daughter 
of Suffolk, and lord Herbert, eldest son of the earl of 
Pembroke. He also married his own daughter to lord 
Hastings, eldest son of the earl of Huntingdon. These 
marriages were solemnized with great pomp and festivity ; 
and the people, who hated Northumberland, could not 
forbear expressing their indignation at seeing such public 
demonstrations of joy during the languishing state of the 
young prince's health. 

The appearance of symptoms of a consumption in Ed- 
ward, made Northumberland more intent on the execution 
of his project. He removed all except his own emissaries 
from about the king ; and by artifice he prevailed on the 
young prince to give his final consent to the settlement 
projected. Sir Edward Montague, chief-justice of the 
common pleas, sir John Baker, and sir Thomas Bromley, 
two judges, were accordingly summoned to the council, 
where, after the minutes of the intended deed were read 
to them, the king required them to draw them up in the 
form of letters patent. They hesitated to obey, and de 
sired time to consider. The more they reflected, the 
greater danger they found in compliance. The settlement 
of the crown by Heniy the Eighth had been made in con- 
sequence of an act of parliament ; and by another act, 
passed in the beginning of this reign, it was declared trea- 
son in any of the heirs, their aiders or abettors, to change 
the order of succession. The judges pleaded these rea- 
sons before the council ; and they were reduced to great 
difiiculties between the dangers from the law, and those 
which arose from the violence of present powder and autho- 
rity. At last, Montague proposed an expedient, which 
satisfied both his brethren and the counsellors. He desired 
that a special commission should be passed by the king 
and council, requiring the judges to draw a patent for the 
new settlement of the crown ; and that a pardon should 



EDWARD VI. 213 

be immediately after granted them for any offence whicn 
they might have incurred by their comphance. 

When the patent was drawn, and brought to the bishop 
of Ely, chancellor, in order to have the great seal affixed 
to it, the prelate required that all the judges should previ- 
ously sign it. The chancellor next required, for his greater 
security, that all the privy-counsellors should set their 
hands to the patent ; and the intrigues of Northumberland, 
or the fear of his violence, were so prevalent, that the coun- 
sellors complied with this demand. Cranmer alone hesi- 
tated during some time, but at last yielded to the earnest 
and pathetic intreaties of the king. 

After this settlement was made, with so many inauspi- 
cious circumstances, Edward visibly declined every day ; 
and, to make matters worse, his physicians were dismissed 
by Northumberland's advice, and by an order of council ; 
and he was put into the hands of an ignorant woman, in 
a little time to restore him to his former state of health. 
After the use of her medicines, all his bad symptoms in- 
creased to the most violent degree ; and he expired at 
Greenwich, in the sixteenth year of his age, and the 
seventh of his reign. 

The English historians dwell with pleasure on the ex- 
cellent qualities of this young prince ; whom the flattering 
promises of hope, joined to many real virtues, had made 
an object of tender affection to the public. He possessed 
mildness of disposition, with application to study and busi- 
ness, and a capacity to learn and judge, with an attach- 
ment to equity and justice. 

During the reign of Edward, the princess Maiy had 
been regarded as his lawful successor ; and though the 
protestants dreaded the effects of her prejudices, 
the extreme hatred universally entertained against iV^o 
the Dudleys, who, it was foreseen, would reign 
under the name of Jane, was more than sufficient to coun- 
terbalance, even with that party, the attachment to reli- 
gion. This last attempt to violate the order of succes- 
sion, had displayed Northumberland's ambition and injus- 
tice in a full light. 

Northumberland, sensible of the opposition which he 
must expect, had carefully concealed tlie destination made 
by the king ; and, in order to bring the two princesses into 
his power, he had the art to engage the council, before 



214 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Edward's death, to write to them in that prince's nawic, 
desiring their attendance, on pretence that his infinii state 
of health required the assistance of their counsel, and the 
consolation of their company. Edward expired before, 
their arrival ; but Northumberland, in order to make the 
princesses fall into the snare, kept the king's death still 
secret ; and the lady Mary had already reached Hoddes- 
den, within half a day's journey of the court. Happily, 
the earl of Arundel sent her private intelligence both of 
her brother's death and of the conspiracy formed against 
her. She immediately made haste to retire ; and she ar- 
rived at Framlingham, in Suffolk, where she purposed to 
embark and escape to Flanders, in case she should find it 
impossible to defend her right of succession. She wrote 
letters to the nobility and most considerable gentry in 
every county of England, commanding them to assist her 
in the defence of her crown and person ; and she des 
patched a message to the council, requiring them imme 
diately to give orders for proclaiming her in London. 

Northumberland found that farther dissimulation was 
fruitless ; and he approached the lady Jane with the re- 
spect due to a sovereign. Jane was in a great measure 
ignorant of the transactions which had taken place ; and 
it was with equal grief and surprise that she received the 
intelligence. She was a lady of an amiable person, an 
engaging disposition, and accomplished talents. Her 
heart, full of a passion for literature and the elegant arts, 
and of tenderness towards her husband, who was desei*v- 
ing of her affections, had no room for ambition. She even 
refused to accept the crown, and pleaded feha right of the 
two princesses ; and she at last yielded rather to the in- 
treaties than the reasons of her father and husband. 

Orders were given by the council to proclaim Jane 
throughout the kingdom ; but these orders were executed 
only in London and the neighbourhood. In the mean 
time, the people of Suffolk paid their attendance on Maiy. 
They were much attached to the reformed religion ; and 
as she assured them that she never meant to change the 
laws of Edward, they enlisted in her cause with zeal and 
affection. The nobility and gentry daily flocked to her, 
and brought her reinforcements. Even a fleet which had 
been sent bv Northumberland to lie off the coast of Suf- 



MARY* 21S 

folk, being forced into Yarmouth by a storm, was engaged 
to declare in her favour. 

Northumberland, hitherto blinded by ambition, saw at 
last the danger gather round him, and knew not which 
way to turn. He had levied forces which were assembled 
at London; but dreading the cabals of the courtiers and 
counsellors, whose compliance he knew had been entirely 
the result of fear or artifice, he was resolved to keep near 
the person of the lady Jane, and send Suffolk to command 
the army. But the counsellors, who wished to remove him, 
working on the filial tenderness of Jane, magnified to he** 
the danger to which her father would be exposed ; and 
represented that Northumberland, who had gained repu- 
tation by formerly suppressing a rebellion in those parts, 
was more proper to command in that enterprise. The 
duke himself, who knew the slender capacity of Suffolk, 
began to think that he only was able to encounter the 
present danger ; and he agreed to take the command of 
the troops. The counsellors attended him at his depar- 
ture with the highest protestations of attachment, and none 
more than Arundel, his mortal enemy. As he went along, 
he remarked the disaffection of the people, which fore- 
boded a fatal issue to his ambitious hopes. " Many," said 
he to lord Gray, " come out to look at us, but I find not 
one who cries God speed you !" 

The duke had no sooner reached St. Edmondsbury, 
than he found his army, which did not exceed six thousand 
men, too weak to encounter the queen's, which amounted 
to double the number. The counsellors immediately laid 
hold of the opportunity to free themselves from confine- 
ment, and to return to the duty which they owed to their 
lawful sovereign. The mayor and aldermen of London 
discovered great alacrity in obeying the orders they re- 
ceived to proclaim Mary. The people expressed their 
approbation by shouts of applause. Even Suffolk, who 
commanded in the tower, finding resistance fruitless, open- 
ed the gates, and declared for the queen. The lady Jane, 
after the vain pageantiy of wearing a crown during ten 
days, returned to a private life with more satisfaction than 
she felt when the royalty was tendered to her ; and the 
messengers who were sent to Northumberland with orders 
to lay down his arms, found that he had despaired of suc- 
cess, was deserted by all his followers, and had already 



*il6 y I ,C HISTORY Of ENGLAND* 

proclaimed the queen, with exterior marks of joy and 
satisfaction. 

The people every where, on the queen's approach to 
London, gave sensible expressions of their loyalty and at- 
tachment ; and the lady Elizabeth met her at the head of 
a thousand horse. The queen gave orders for taking into 
custody the duke of Northumberland, who fell on his knees 
to the earl of Arundel, sent to arrest him, and abjectly 
begged his life. At the same time were committed the 
earl of Warvrick, his eldest son ; lord Ambrose and lord 
Henry Dudley, two of his younger sons ; sir Andrew Dud- 
ley, his brother ; the marquis of Northampton, the earl of 
Huntingdon, sir Thomas Palmer, and sir John Gates. 
The queen afterwards confined the duke of Suftblk, lady 
Jane Gray, and lord Guilford Dudley. But Mary was 
desirous, in the beginning of her reign, to acquire popu- 
larity by the appearance of clemency ; and because the 
counsellors pleaded constraint as an excuse for their trea- 
son, she extended her pardon to most of them. Suftblk 
owed his liberty to the contempt of his incapacity ; but 
Northumberland was too powerful and dangerous to be 
pardoned ; he pleaded guilty, and was executed. Sir 
Thomas Palmer and su' John Gates suffered with him. 
Sentence was also pronounced against the lady Jane and 
lord Guilford ; but the execution of it was at present 
deferred. 

The joy arising from the succession of the lawful heir 
did not prevent the people from feeling great anxiety 
concerning the state of religion ; and the nation dreaded 
not only the abolition, but the persecution of the establish- 
ed religion, from the zeal of Mary ; and it was not long 
before she discovered her intentions. Gardiner, Bonner, 
Tonstal, and others, were reinstated in their sees ; and 
Cranmer, whose merits to the queen during the reign of 
Henry had been considerable, was tried for the part which 
he had acted in concurring with lady Jane, and pronounced 
guilty of high treason. The execution of the sentence, 
however, did not follow ; and Cranmer was reserved for a 
more cruel punishment. 

Several English protestants, foreseeing a persecution of 
the reformers, took shelter in foreign parts ; and aff*air9 
wore a dismal aspect for the reformation. In opening tlie 
parliament, the court showed a contempt of the laws, by 



MARY. 217 

celebrating before the two houses a mass of the Holy Ghost 
ill the Latin tongue, attended with all the ancient rites 
and ceremonies, though abolished by act of parliament. 
Taylor, bishop of Lincoln, having reftised to kneel at this 
service, was severely handled, and was violently thrust 
out of the house. The queen, however, still retained the 
title of supreme head of the church of England ; and it 
was generally pretended, that the intention of the court 
was only to restore religion to the same condition in which 
it had been left by Henry ; but that the other abuses of 
popery, which were the most grievous to the nation, would 
never be revived. 

The lii'st bill passed by the parliament was of a popular 
nature, and abolished every species of treason not con- 
tained in the statute of Edward HI., and every species of 
felony that did not subsist before the first of Henry the 
Eighth. All the statutes of king Edward, with regai-d to 
religion, were repealed by one vote. The attainder of the 
duke of Norfolk was reversed ; and this act of justice was 
more reasonable, than the declaring of that attainder inva- 
lid, w^ithout farther authority. 

Notwithstanding the compliance of the two houses with 
the queen's inclinations, they were determined not to sub- 
mit tamely to her pleasure in the choice of a husband. 
There were three matches, concerning which it was sup- 
posed that Mary had deliberated after her accession. The 
first person proposed to her was the earl of Devonshire, 
whose person and address had visibly gained on the 
queen's affections ; but that nobleman neglected the ad- 
vantage, and attached himself to the lady Elizabeth, 
whose youth and agreeable conversation he preferred to 
all the power and grandeur of her sister ; the second was 
cardinal Pole, who had never taken priest's orders, but 
who, having contracted habits of study and retirement, 
was represented to the queen as unsuitable to the business 
of a court ; the third was Philip, son of the emperor 
Charles V. ; and this alliance was not only desired by the 
emperor, but strenuously recommended by Gardiner, who 
had become prime minister, and was readily embraced by 
Mary herself. The commons were alarmed that the queen 
had resolved to contract a foreign alliance ; and they sent 
a committee to remonstrate in strong terms against that 
dangerous measure. To prevent farther applications of the 
19 



218 3 ^ ^ HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

same kind, she thonght proper to dissolve the parliament. 
After the parliament was dismissed, the new laws with 
regard to religion were openly put in execution. The mass 
was every where re-established ; and marriage was de- 
clared to be incompatible with any spiritual office. This 
violent and sudden change of religion inspired the protes- 

tants with great discontent ; but the Spanish match 
^'crl was a point of more general concern, and diffused 

universal apprehensions for the liberty and inde- 
pendence of the nation. To obviate all clamour, the 
articles of marriage were drawn as favourably as possible 
for the interest and security, and even grandeur, of Eng- 
land. It was agreed that though Philip should have the 
title of king, the administration should be entirely in the 
queen ; that no foreigner should be capable of enjoying 
any office in the kingdom ; that no innovation should be 
made in the English laws, customs, and privileges ; that 
Philip should not carry the queen abroad without her con- 
sent, nor any of her children without the consent of the 
nobility ; that the male issue of this marriage should in- 
herit, together with England, both Burg-undy and the Low 
Countries ; and that if Don Carlos, Philip's son by his 
former marriage, should die, and his line be extinct, the 
queen's issue, whether male or female, should inherit 
Spain, Sicily, Milan, and all the other dominions of Philip. 
These articles, however, gave no satisfaction ; and com- 
plaints were every where diffused that England would be- 
come a province, and a province to a kingdom which 
usually exercised the most violent authority over all her 
dependent dominions. Some persons, more turbulent than 
the rest, formed a conspiracy to lise in arms, and declare 
against the queen's marriage with Philip. Sir Thomas 
\Vyat purposed to raise Kent ; sir Peter Carew, Devon- 
shire ; and they engaged the duke of Suffolk, by the hopes 
of recovering the crown for the lady Jane, to attempt rais- 
ing the midland counties. Carew's rebellion was soon 
suppressed ; and he was obliged to fly into France. Suf- 
folk endeavoured to raise the people in the counties of 
Warwick and Leicester ; bm oenig closely pursued by tht 
earl of Huntingdon, at the head of three hundred horse, 
he was taken, and carried prisoner to London. Wyal 
was at first more successful in his attempt ; and having 
published a declaration at Maidstone, in Kent, against the 



MARY. 2J9 

queen's evil counsellors, and against the Spanish match, 
the people began to liock to his standard. The duke of 
Norfolk, with sir Henry Jernegan, was sent against him, 
at the head of the guards and some other troops, reinforced 
with live hundred Londoners commanded by Bret. The 
Londoners, however, deserted to Wyat, and declared that 
they would not contribute to enslave their native country ; 
and Norfolk, dreading the contagion of the example, im- 
mediately retreated with his troops, and took shelter in 
the city. 

After this proof of the disposition of the people, espe- 
cially of the Londoners, who were mostly protestants, Wyat 
was encouraged to proceed : he led his forces to South- 
wark, but finding that the bridge was secured against him, 
and that the city was overawed, he marched up to King- 
ston, where he passed the river with four thousand men ; 
and returning towards London, hoped to encourage his 
partisans, who had engaged to declare for him. He had, 
however, imprudently wasted so much time, that the cri- 
tical season, on which all popular commotions depend, 
was entirely lost, and his followers insensibly falling off; 
he was taken prisoner near Temple bar, and soon after 
executed, with about four hundred of his adherents. 

The lady Elizabeth had been, during some time, treated 
with great harshness by her sister. Mary seized the op- 
portunity of this rebellion : and hoping to involve Eliza- 
beth in some appearance of guilt, committed her to the 
tower ; but the princess made so good a defence before 
the council, who examined her, that the queen found her- 
self under the necessity of releasing her. Li order, how- 
ever, to send her out of the kingdom, a marriage was 
offered her with the duke of Savoy ; and when she de- 
clined the proposal, she was committed to custody under 
a strong guard at Woodstock. 

This rebellion proved fatal to the lady Jane Gray and 
her husband. She was warned to prepare for death ; a 
doom which she had long expected, and which the inno- 
cence of her life, as well as the misfortunes to which she 
had been exposed, rendered nowise unwelcome to her. 
The queen's zeal, under colour of tender mercy to the 
prisoner's soul, induced her to send divines who harassed 
her with perpetual disputation. The lady Jane, however, 
had presence of mind, in those melancholy circumstances^ 



220 ' HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

not (m\y to defend her religion by all the topics then in 
use, but also to write a letter to her sister in the Greek 
language ; in which, besides sending her a copy of the 
scriptures in that tongue, she exhorted her to maintain, 
m every fortune, a like steady perseverance. On the day 
of her execution, her husband, lord Guilford, desired 
permission to see her ; but she refused her consent, and 
informed him by a message, that the tenderness of their 
parting would overcome the fortitude of both, and would 
too much unbend their minds from that constancy which 
their approaching end required : their separation, she said, 
would be only for a moment ; and they would soon rejoin 
each other in a scene where their affections would be for 
ever united, and where death, disappointment, and mis- 
fortunes, could no longer have access to them, or disturb 
their eternal felicity. She saw her husband led to execu- 
tion : and having given him from the window some token 
of tier remembrance, she waited with tranquility till her 
own appointed hour should bring her to a like fate. She 
even saw his headless body carried back in a cart, and 
found hei-self more confirmed, by the reports which she 
heard of the constancy of his end, than shaken by so tender 
and melancholy a spectacle. Sir John Gage, consta- 
ble of the tower, when he led her to execution, desired 
her to bestow on him some small present, which he might 
keep as a perpetual memorial of her ; she gave him her 
table-book, on which she had just written three sentences 
on seeing her husband's dead body ; one in Greek, another 
in Latin, a third in English. The purport of them was, 
that human justice was against his body, but divine mercy 
would be favourable to his soul ; that if her fault deserved 
punishment, her youth at least, and her imprudence, were 
worthy of excuse ; and that God and posterity, she trusted, 
would show her favour. On the scaffold she made a 
speech to the spectators, in which the mildness of her dis- 
position led her to take the. blame wholly on herself, with- 
out uttering one complaint against the severity with which 
she had been treated ; and then, with a steady and serene 
countenance, she submitted to the stroke of death. 

The duke of Suffolk was tried and condemned, and soon 
after executed ; and the tower and all the prisons were 
filled with nobility and gentry, whom their interest with 
the nation rendered objects of suspicion. The queen j 



MARY. 221 

finding that she was universally hated, determined to de 
prive the people of resistance, by ordering general mus- 
ters, and directing the commissioners to seize their arms. 

The ministry hoped to find a compliant disposition in 
the new parliament, which was summoned to assemble ; 
and for the purpose of facilitating this object, the emperor 
distributed above four hundred thousand crowns in bribes 
and pensions among the members. Gardiner, the chan- 
cellor, opened the session by a speech, in which he ob- 
served, that in order to obviate the inconveniences which 
might arise from different pretenders, it was necessary to 
invest the queen, by law, with a power of disposing of the 
crown, and of appointing her successor. The parliament, 
however, who knew her extreme hatred to Elizabeth, and 
the probabihty of her making a will in her husband's fa- 
vour, and thereby rendering England for ever a province 
to the Spanish monarchy, refused to acquiesce in Gardi- 
ner's proposal ; and, the more effectually to cut off Philip's 
hopes, they passed a law, " that her majesty, as their only 
queen, should solely, and as a sole queen, enjoy the crown 
and sovereignty of her realms, with all the pre-eminences, 
dignities, and rights thereto belonging, in as large and 
ample manner after her marriage, without any title or 
claim accruing to the prince of Spain, either as tenant by 
courtesy, or by any other means." 

The queen, finding the parliament less subservient than 
she wished, finished the session by dissolving them ; and 
she employed all her thoughts on receiving Don Philip, 
whose arrival she hourly expected. She waited with the 
utmost impatience for the completion of the marriage ; and 
every obstacle was to her a source of anxiety and discon- 
tent. She complained of Philip's delays as affected ; and 
she could not conceal her vexation, that though she 
brought him a kingdom as her dowry, he treated her with 
such neglect, that he had never yet favoured her with a sin- 
gle letter. Her health, and even her understanding, were 
visibly hurt by this extreme impatience ; and she was 
struck with a new apprehension lest her person, impaired 
by time and blasted by sickness, should prove disagreea- 
ble to her future consort. Her glass discovered to her how 
haggard she was become ; and when she remarked the 
decay of her beauty, she knew not whether she ought more 
to desire or apprehend the arrival of Philip. 
19* 



22<8 HISTORY OB* ENGLAND* 

At last, news was brought the queen of Philip'* arrival 
at Southampton. A few days after they were married at 
Westminster, and having made a pompous entry into Lon- 
don, she carried him to Windsor, the place in which they 
afterwards resided. The prince's behaviour was ill-cal- 
culated to remove the prejudices which the English nation 
had entertained against him. He was distant and reserved 
in his address ; and so entrenched himself in form and 
ceremony, that he was in a manner inaccessible ; but this 
circumstance rendered him the more acceptable to the 
queen, who desired to have no company but her husband'^s, 
and who was impatient when she met with any interrup- 
tion to her fondness, 

Mary soon found that Philip's ruling passion was am- 
bition ; and that the only method of gratifying him, and 
securing his atfections, was to render him master of Eng^ 
land. For the purpose of obtaining this favourite object, 
she summoned a new parliament, in hopes of finding them 
entirely compliant ; but the hatred to the Spaniards still 
prevailed, and the queen failed in the endeavour to get 
her husband declared presumptive heir to the crown. That 
assembly, however, was more obsequious in regard to reli- 
gion : it had reversed the attainder of cardinal Pole, wlio 
had come over invested with legatine powers from the 
pope ; and who, after being introduced to the king stud 
queen, invited the parliament to reconcile themselves and 
the kingdom to the apostolic see, from which they had 
been so long and so unhappily divided. This message was 
taken iii good part ; and both houses voted an address to 
Philip and Maiy, acknowledging that they had been guilty 
of a most horrible defection from the true church ; and 
praying their majesties to intercede with the holy father 
for the absolution and forgiveness of their penitent sub- 
jects. The request was easily granted. The legate, in 
the name of his holiness, gave the parliament and kingdom 
absolution, freed them from all censures, and received 
them again into the bosom of the church. 

The queen's extreme desire of having issue made hei 
fondly give credit to every appearance of pregnancy ; and 
"when the legate was introduced to her, she fancied that she 
felt the embryo stir in her womb. Great rejoicings were 
made on this occasion ; but the nation remained somewhat 
incredulous. The belief, however, of her pregnancy was 



upheld \Vith all possible care ; and was one artifice by 
which Philip endeavoured to support his authority in the 
kingdom. The parliament passed a law, which, in case of* 
the queen's demise, appointed him protector during 
the minority ; and the king and queen, finding that .. 1^ ' 
they could obtain no farther concessions, came un- 
expectedly to Westminster and dissolved them. 

The success of Gardiner in governing the parliament, 
and engaging them to concur both in the Spanish match, 
and in the re-establishment of the ancient religion, had 
raised his character above that of Pole, who was regarded 
rather as a good man than a great minister. The latter 
was very sincere in his religious principles, and thought 
that no consideration of human policy ought ever to come 
in competition with the catholic doctrines ; whilst Gardi- 
ner, on the contrary, had always made his religion sub- 
servient to his schemes of safety or -advancement. Yet 
the benevolent disposition of Pole led him to advise a tole- 
ration of the heretical tenets, which he highly blamed ; 
while the severe manners of Gardiner inclined him to sup- 
port by persecution that religion which in reality he re- 
garded with great indifference. 

The arguments and views of Gardiner were more agree- 
able to the cruel bigotry of Mary and Philip ; and the 
scheme of toleration was entirely rejected. It was deter- 
mined to let loose the laws in their full vigour against tl\e 
reformed religion ; and England was soon filled with scenes 
of horror, which have ever since rendered the catholic re- 
ligion the object of deserved detestation. 

Rogers, prebendaiy of St. Paul's, a man eminent in his 
party for virtue as well as for learning, was the first victim 
of the persecutors. This man, besides the care of his own 
preservation, lay under other powerful temptations to re- 
cant : he had a wife whom he tenderly loved, and ten chil- 
dren ; yet such was his serenity after his condemnation, 
that the jailors, it is said, waked him from a sound sleep, 
when the hour of his execution approached. He had de- 
sired to see his wife before he died ; but Gardiner told 
him, that he was a priest, and could not possibly have a 
wife ; thus adding insult to cruelty. 

Hooper, bishop of Gloucester, had been tried at the same 
time with Rogers ; but was sent to his own diocess to be 
executed. This circumstance w^ contiived to strike the 



2*24 'Li HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

greater terror into his flock ; but it was a source of conso 
lation to Hooper, who rejoiced in giving testimony by his 
death to that doctrine which he had formerly preached 
among them. When he was tied to the stake, a stool was 
3et before him, and the queen's pardon laid upon it, which 
it was still in his power to merit by a recantation ; but he 
ordered it to be removed ; and cheerfully prepared himself 
for that dreadful punishment to which he was sentenced. 
He suffered it in its full severity : the wind which was 
violent, blew the flame of the reeds from his body ; the 
faogots were green, and did not kindle easily; all his lower 
parts were consumed before his vitals were attacked ; but 
he was heard to pray, and to exhort the people, till his 
tono^ue, swollen with the violence of his agony, could no 
longer permit him utterance. 

Sanders was burnt at Coventry: a pardon was also 
offered him ; but he rejected it, and embraced the stake, 
saying, " Welcome the cross of Christ ! welcome everlast- 
ing life !" Taylor, parson of Hadley, was punished by fire 
in that place, surrounded by his former friends and pa- 
rishioners. Philpot, archdeacon of Winchester, was con- 
demned to the flames, and suffered at Smithfield. The 
imputed crime for which almost all the protestants were 
condemned, was their refusal to acknowledge the doctrine 
of the real presence. 

Gardiner, who had vainly expected that a few examples 
would strike terror into the reformers, finding the work 
daily multiply upon him, devolved the invidious ofl^ice on 
others, chiefly on Bonner, a man of profligate manners, 
and of a brutal character, who seemed to rejoice in the tor- 
ments of the unhappy suff*erers. He sometimes whipped 
the prisoners with his own hands, till he was tired with the 
violence of the exercise : he tore out the beard of a weaver 
who refused to rehnquish his reli^ on ; and that he might 
give him a specimen of burning, he held his hand to the 
candle till the sinews and veins shrunk and burst. 

It is impossible to enumerate in this work all the cruel- 
ties practised in England during the three years that these 
persecutions lasted. Ferrar, bishop of St. David's, was 
burned in his own diocess. Ridley, bishop of London, and 
Latimer, formerly bishop of Worcester, two prelates cele- 
brated for learning and virtue, perished together in the 
same flames at Oxford, and supported each other's con 



MARY. 23ij 

stancy by their mutual exhortations. Latimer, when tied 
to the stake, called to his companion, " Be of good cheer, 
brother ; we shall this day kindle such a torch in England, 
as, I trust in God, shall never be extinguished." 

The tender sex itself, as they have commonly greater 
propensity to religion, produced many examples of the 
most inflexible courage in supporting the profession of their 
faith against all the persecutors. One execution in par- 
ticular was attended with circumstances which, even at 
that time, excited astonishment by reason of their unusual 
barbarity. A woman in Guernsey, being near the time of 
her labour, when brought to the stake was thrown into such 
agitation by the torture that her belly burst, and she was 
delivered in the midst of the flames. One of the guards 
immediately snatched the infant from the fire, and at- 
tempted to save it ; but a magistrate, who stood by, order- 
ed it to be thrown back, being determined, he said, that 
nothing should survive which sprang from so obstinate and 
heretical a parent. 

These barbarities, committed in the name of a religion 
which abjures them, excited horror in the nation, and ren- 
dered the Spanish government daily more odious. Philip 
sensible of the hatred which he incurred, ordered his con- 
fessor to deliver, in his presence, a sermon in favour of 
toleration ; but this shallow artifice failed of the desired 
effect, and the court threw off" the mask. An attempt was 
made to introduce the inquisition into England ; and a 
commission was appointed, by authority of the queen's 
prerogative, more eff*ectually to extirpate heresy ; but the 
court devised a more expeditious and summary method of 
supporting orthodoxy than even the inquisition itself. 
They issued a proclamation against books of heresy, trea- 
son, and sedition, declaring, " that whosoever had any of 
these books, and did not presently burn them, without 
reading them, or showing them to any other person, should 
be esteemed rebels ; and without any farther delay be 
executed by martial law." 

In the space of three years, it is computed that two 
hundred and seventy-seven persons were brought to the 
stake ; besides those who were punished by imprisonment, 
fines, and confiscations. Among those who suffered by 
fire were five bishops, twenty-onee clergymen, eight lay 
gentlemen, eighty-four tradesmen, one hundred husband 



226 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

men, servants, and labourers, fifty-five women, and four 
children. 

The burning of heretics was a very natural method of 
reconciling the kingdom to the Romish communion ; and 
little solicitation was requisite to engage the pope to receive 
the strayed flock. However, Paul IV., who now filled the 
papal chair, insisted that the property and possessions of the 
church should be restored to the uttermost farthing-. This 
demand had little influence on the nation, but operated 
powerfully on the queen, who was determined, in order to 
ease her conscience, to restore all the church-lands which 
were still in the possession of the crown ; and the more to 
display her zeal, she erected anew some convents and 
monasteries, notwithstanding the low condition of the ex- 
chequer. When this measure was debated in council, 
some members objected, that if such a considerable part 
of the revenue were dismembered, the dignity of the crown 
would fall to decay ; but the queen replied, that she pre- 
ferred the salvation of her soul to ten such kingdoms as 
England. 

Persecution had now become extremely odious to the 
nation ; and the effects of the public discontent appeared 
in the new parliament summoned to meet at Westminster, 
A bill was passed, restoring to the church the tenths and 
first-fruits, and all the impropriations which remained in 
the hands of the crown ; but though this matter directly 
concerned none but the queen herself, great opposition was 
made to the bill in the house of commons. An application 
being made for a subsidy during two years, and for two 
fifteenths, the latter was refused by the commons ; and 
many members said, that while the crown was thus de- 
spoiling itself of its revenue, it was in vain to bestow riches 
upon it. The queen, finding the intractable humour of 
the commons, thought proper to dissolve the parliament; 

The spirit of opposition which prevailed in parliament, 
was the more vexatious to Mary, as Philip, tired of her 
importunate love and jealousy, and finding his authority 
extremely limited in England, had left her, and gone over 
to Flanders. The indifference and neglect of her husbantl, 
added to the disappointment in her imagined pregnancy, 
threw her into a deep melancholy ; and she gave vent to 
her spleen, by daily enforcing the persecutions against 
the protestants, and even by expressions of rage against all 



MARY. 227 

her subjects, by whom she knew herself to be hated, and 
whose opposition, in refusing an entire conipHance witli 
Phihp, was the cause, she beheved, why he had ahenated 
his affections from her, and afforded her so httie of his 
company. The less return her love met with, the more it 
increased ; and she passed most of her time in solitude, 
where she gave vent to her passion, either in tears, or in 
writing fond epistles to Philip, who seldom returned her 
any answer, and^|iarcely deigned to pretend any sentiment 
of love, or even of" gratitude, towards her. The chief part 
of government to which she attended, was the extorting of 
money from her people, in order to satisfy his demands ; 
and as the parliament had granted her but a scanty sup- 
ply, she had recourse to expedients very violent and irre-^ 
gular. She levied loans and exacted contributions with 
the greatest rapacity ; and this at a time when she was at 
peace with all the world, and had no other occasion for 
money than to supply the demands of a husband, who at- 
tended only to his own convenience, and showed himself 
indifferent to her interests. 

Philip was now become master of all the wealth of the 
new world, and of the richest and most extensive 
dominions in Europe, by the voluntary resignation I'r^ 
of the emperor Charles V., who, though still in the 
vigour of his age, had taken a disgust to the world, and 
was determined to seek, in the tranquility of retreat, for 
that happiness which he had in vain pursued amidst the 
tumults of war, and the restless projects of ambition. 
Philip, finding himself threatened with a war with France, 
was desirous of embarking England in the quarrel ; and 
though the queen was extremely averse to the measure, 
yet she was incapable of resisting her husband's importu- 
nity. But she had little weight with her council, and still 
less with her people ; and a new act of barbarity, of which 
she was guilty, rendered her government extremely un- 
popular. 

Cranmer had long been detained prisoner; but the 
queen now determined to bring him to punishment ; and 
in order tne more fully to satiate her vengeance, she re- 
solved to punish him for heresy, ratk^er than for treason. 
He was cited by the pope to stand his trial at Rome ; and 
though he was known to be kept in close custody at Ox- 
ford, he was, upon his not appearing, condemned as con- 



228 f HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

tumacious. Bonner, bishop of London, and Thirl eby, of 
Ely, were sent to degra-de him ; and the former executed 
the melancholy ceremony with all the joy and exultation 
which suited his savage nature. The implacable spirit of 
the queen, not satisfied with the execution of that dreadful 
sentence to which he was condemned, prompted her to 
seek the ruin of his honour, and the infamy of his name. 
Persons were employed to attack him by flattery, insinua- 
tion, and address ; by representing the^gnities to which 
his character still entitled him, if he would merit them by a 
recantation ; and by giving hopes of long enjoying those 
powerful friends whom his beneficent disposition had at- 
tached to him during the course of his prosperity. Over- 
come by the fond love of life, and terrified by the prospect 
of those tortures which awaited him, he allowed, in an un- 
guarded hour, the sentiments of nature to prevail over his 
resolution, and agreed to subscribe the doctrines of the 
papal supremacy, and of the real presence. The court, 
equally perfidious and cruel, w^ere determined that his 
recantation should avail him nothing ; and they sent him 
orders that he should be required to acknowledge his 
errors in church before the whole people, and that he 
should thence be immediately carried to execution. Whe- 
ther Cranmer had received a secret intimation of their 
design, or had repented of his weakness, he surprised the 
audience by a contrary declaration. He said, that he was 
well apprized of the obedience which he owed to his sove- 
reign and the laws ; but this duty extended no farther than 
to submit patiently to their commands, and to bear, with 
out resistance, whatever hardships they should impose 
upon him ; that a superior duty, the duty which he owed 
to his Maker, obliged him to speak truth on all occasions, 
and not relinquish, by a base denial, the holy doctrine 
which the Supreme Being had revealed to mankind ; that 
there was one miscarriage in his life, of which, above all 
others, he severely repented — the insincere declaration oi 
faith to which he had the weakness to consent, and which 
the fear of death alone had extorted from him ; that he 
took this opportunity of atoning for his eiTor, by a sincere 
and open recantation ; and was willing to seal with his 
blood, that doctrine which he firmly believed to be com- 
municated from heaven ; and that, as his hand had erred, 
by betraying his heart, it should first be punished, by a se 



MARY. ■ -229 

vere but just doom, and should first pay the forfeit of its 
offences. He was thence led to the stake, amidst tlie in- 
sults of the catholics ; and having now summoned up all 
the force of his mind, he bore their scorn, as well as the 
torture of his punishment, with singular fortitude. He 
stretched out his hand, and, without betraying, either by 
his countenance or motions, the least sign of weakness, or 
even of feeling, he held it in the flames till it was entirely 
consumed. Hi^thoughts seemed wholly occupied with 
reflections on his former fault, and he called aloud several 
times, "this hand has offended." Satisfied with that 
atonement, he then discovered a serenity in his counte- 
nance ; and when the fire attacked his body, he seemed 
to be quite insensible of his outvi^ard sufferings, and by the 
force of hope and resolution, to have collected his mind 
altogether within itself, and to repel the fury of the flames. 
It IS pretended, that after his body was consumed, his 
heait was found entire and untouched amidst the ashes ; 
an event which, as it was the emblem of his constancy, 
was fondly believed by the zealous protestants. Cranmer 
was undoubtedly a man of great merit. He was adorned 
with candour, sincerity, and beneficence, and all those 
virtues which were fitted to render him useful and amiable 
in society. His moral qualities procured him universal 
respect ; and his learning and capacity entitled him to the 
esteem of mankind. 

After Cranmer's death, cardinal Pole was installed in 
the see of Canterbury, and placed at the head of the 
church of England ; but, though he was averse to all san- 
guinary methods of converting heretics, his authority was 
too weak to oppose the barbarous and bigotted disposition 
of the queen and her counsellors. In order to engage the 
nation in the war between France and Spain, Philip had 
come to London ; and he told the queen, that if he were 
not gratified in this request, he Vv^ould never more 
set foot in England. After employing menaces iVr-C 
and artifices, Mary's importunity prevailed ; war 
was declared against France ; and preparations were 
made for invading that kingdom. 

The revenue of England at that time little exceeded 

three hundred thousand pounds ; and in order to support 

the war, the queen levied money by the most arbitrary and 

violent methods. She oblia^ed the city of London to sup- 

20 



230 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

ply her with sixty thousand pounds on her husband's en 
try ; she levied, before tlie legal time, the second year's 
subsidy voted by parliament ; she issued &.new many privy- 
seals, by which she procured loans from the people ; and 
having equipped a fleet, which she could not victual, by 
reason of tlie dearness of provisions, she seized ail the 
corn she could find in Suffolk and Norfolk, without paying 
any price to the owners. By all these expedients, assisted 
by the power of pressing, she levied an ipay of ten thou 
sand men, which she sent over to the Low Countries, un 
der the command of the earl of Pembroke. Meanwhile, 
in order to prevent any disturbance at home, many of the 
most considerable gentry were thrown into the tower; 
and, lest they should be known, they either were carried 
thither in the night time, or were hood- winked and muffled 
by the guards who conducted them. 

The king of Spain's army, after the junction of the 
English, amounted to sixty thousand men ; and the duke 
of Savoy, who commanded it, suddenly invested St. Quen- 
tin. The constable, Montmorency, approached the place 
with his whole army ; but being attacked by the besiegers, 
he was totally defeated and made prisoner. By this event, 
the whole kingdom of France was thrown into consterna- 
tion ; but the cautious temper of Philip allowed the French 
time to recover their spirits, and no other enterprise of 
moment followed this decisive victory. 

Calais, which the English had held above two hundred 

years, was unexpectedly invested, and attacked by 

^'c-Fq the duke of Guise, who in eight days, during the 

depth of winter, made himself master of this strong 

fortress, though it had cost Edward III. a siege of eleven 

months, at the head of a numerous army, which had that 

very year been victorious in the battle of Cressy. The 

loss of this valuable fortress occasioned loud murmurs 

among the English, who complained of the improvidence 

of the queen and her council. 

The Scots, excited by the French, began to infest the 
borders ; and the English were obhged to look to their 
defence at home, rather than think of foreign conquests. 
In order to connect Scotland more closely with France, 
and to increase the influence of the latter kingdom, it was 
thought proper by Henry to celebrate the marriage be- 
tween the young queen and the dauphin ; and a deputa 



MARY. 231 

tion was sent by the Scottish parhament to assist at the 
ceremony, and to settle the terms of the contract. 

This close alUance between France and Scotland tbi'eat- 
ened very nearly the repose and security of Mary ; and it 
was foreseen, that though the factions and disorders which 
might naturally be expected in the Scottish government, 
during the absence of the sovereign, would make its power 
less formidable,. that kingdom would at least afford to the 
French a means of invading England. The queen, there- 
fore, found it necessary to summon a parliament, and to 
demand of them some supplies to her exhausted exche- 
quer. The commons, without making any reflections on 
the past exactions and extortions, voted, besides a fifteenth, 
a subsidy of four shillings in the pound on land, and two 
shillings and eight pence on goods. The parliament also 
passed an act, confirming all tlie sales and grants of crown- 
lands, which either were already made by the queen, or 
should be made during the seven ensuing years. 

During this whole reign, the nation were under great 
apprehensions with regard not only to the succession, but 
the life of the lady Ehzabeth. The violent hatred which 
the queen bore to her appeared on every occasion ; and it 
required all the prudence of that princess to prevent the 
eftects of Mary's jealous disposition. Being asked her 
opinion of the real presence, the net for catching the pro- 
testants, she is said to have replied as follows : 

" Christ was the word that spake it, 
He took the bread and brake it; 
And what the word did make it, 
That I believe and take it." 

The money granted by parliament enabled the queen to 
fit out a fleet of a hundred and forty sail, which being 
joined by thirty Flemish ships, and carrying six thousand 
land forces on board, was sent to make an attempt on the 
coast of Brittany. Negotiations for peace were entered 
into between the kings of France and Spain ; and the ar- 
mies in Picardy were put into winter quarters till the 
princes should come to some agreement. Among other 
conditions, Henry demanded the restitution of Navarre to 
its lawful owner ; Philip, that of Calais and its territory 
to England ; but in the midst of these negotiations, news 
arrived of Mary's death. She had long been in a decli- 



232 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

ning state of health ; and the loss of Calais, and tht 
/_-o absence of her husband, brought on a lingering 
fever, of which she died, after a short and inglo- 
rious reign of five years, four months, and eleven days. 

Mary possessed few qualities either estimable or amia- 
ble ; and her person was as little engaging as her beha- 
viour and address. Obstinacy, bigotry, violence, cruelty, 
malignity, revenge, and tyranny, the fruits of bad temper, 
and a narrow understanding, attach to her character ; and 
amidst this ccmplication of vices, we can find no other 
virtue than that of sincerity. 

Under her reign, the naval power of England was so 
inconsiderable, that fourteen thousand pounds bemg or- 
dered to the repairing and victualling of the fleet, it was 
computed that ten thousand pounds a year would after- 
wards answer all necessary charges. 



CHAP. XII. 

The reign of Elizabeth. 
Elizabeth had displayed great prudence during the 
reign of her sister ; and as men were sensible of the im- 
minent danger to which she was exposed, compassion to- 
wards her situation, and concern for her safety, had ren- 
dered her the favourite of the nation. A parliament had 

been assembled a few days before Mary's death ; 
\'t^o and when that event was notified to them, scarcely 

an interval of regret appeared ; the two houses 
immediately resounded with the joyful acclamations of 
" God save queen Elizabeth ; long and happily may she 
reign !" The people, less actuated by faction, expressed a 
joy still more general and sincere. With a prudence and 
magnanimity truly laudable, Ehzabeth buried all ofteiices 
in oblivion ; but when the bishops came to make obei- 
sance to her, she turned away from Bonner, as from a 
man polluted with blood. 

In notifying her accession to Philip, she expressed to 
him her gratitude for the protection which he had afforded 
lier ; and that monarch, hoping by the means of Elizabeth 
to obtain that dominion over England of which he had 
failed in espousing Mary, made her proposals 6f marriage. 
To these, however, she returned an obliging, but evasive 
answer. 



ELIZABETH. 233 

The education and conviction of Elizabeth determined 
her to pursue the measures of the reformation ; and she 
frequently dehberated with sir Wilham Cecil on the means 
of restoring the protestant religion ; but she resolved to 
proceed with cautious steps, and not to imitate the exam- 
ple of Mary, in encouraging a violent invasion on the es- 
tablished religion. She recalled those who had fled ; she 
set at liberty those who had been confined on account of 
religion ; she ordered a great part of the service to be 
read in English ; and after enjoining all the churches to 
conform to the }3ractice of her own chapel, she forbade the 
host to be any more elevated in her presence. By her 
aftalility and address she gained the afl^ections of her sub- 
jects ; and she delayed the entire change of religion till 
the meeting of the parliament, which was summoned to 
assemble. 

The elections had gone entirely against the catholics ; 
and the houses met in a disposition to gratify the queen. 
They began the session with an unanimous declaration, 
that " queen Elizabeth was, and ought to be, as well by 
the word of God, as the common and statute laws of the 
realm, the lawful, undoubted, and true heir to the crown, 
lawfully descended from the blood-royal, according to the 
order of succession settled in the thirty-fifth of Henry 
VIII." This act of recognition was probably dictated by 
the queen herself and her minister ; and she did not follow 
the example of Mary, in declaring the validity of her 
mother's marriage, or in expressly repealing the act for- 
merly fiassed against her own legitimacy. 

The first bill brought into parliament was for suppress- 
ing; the monasteries lately erected, and for restoring the 
tenths and first-fruits to the queen. This point being 
gif^ined, a bill was next passed, annexing the supremacy 
to the crown, which was vested with the whole spiritual 
power ; and whoever denied, or refused to acknowledge the 
queen's supremacy, was subjected to certain pains and 
penalties. A law was passed confirming all the statutes 
enacted in king Edward's time with regard to religion. 

A solemn and public disputation was held during this 
session, between the divines of the protestant and those 
of the catholic communion, in which, it may be easily 
imagined, the champions of the former were entirely trium- 
phant. Emboldened by this victory, the protestants ven- 



234 ^ f f' HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

tured on bringing a bill into parliament for abolishing the 
mass, and re-establishing the liturgy of king Edward. 
Thus, in one session, without any violence or tumult, the 
whole system of religion was changed, and placed on 
another foundation. 

The commons also voted the queen a liberal subsidy ; 
but when, in an importunate address, they besought her to 
fix her choice of a husband, she rejected the proposal, and 
observed, that England was her husband, and the people 
her children. She added, that she desired no higher cha- 
racter than to have it inscribed on her tombstone, " Here 
lies Elizabeth, who lived and died a maiden queen." 

While the queen and parliament were employed in set- 
tling the national religion, negotiations for peace were 
carried on between the ministers of France, Spain, and 
England. Philip employed his utmost efforts to procure 
a restitution of Calais to England. So long as he enter- 
tained hopes of espou>sing the queen, he delayed to con- 
clude a peace with Henry ; and he seemed willing to con- 
tinue the vt^ar till she should obtain satisfaction. But Eli- 
zabeth, sensible of the low state of her finances, ordered 
her ambassadors to conclude a peace with Henry on any 
reasonable terms. It was agreed, that Henry should re- 
store Calais at the expiration of eight years ; but it was 
evident, that this was only a colourable pretence for aban- 
doning that fortress. A peace with Scotland was a ne- 
cessary consequence of that with France. 

But though peace was concluded between France and 
England, there soon appeared serious grounds for mis- 
understanding. The king of France ordered his son and 
daughter-in-la^ to quarter the arms of England on all 
their equipages and liveries ; and as the queen of Scots 
was next heir to that throne, Elizabeth plainly saw, that 
the king of France intended, on the first opportunity, to 
dispute her legitimacy, and her title to the crown. Soon 
after, Francis 11. succeeded to the throne of France, and 
still continuing to assume without reserve the title of king 
of England, she began to consider him and his queen as 
her mortal enemies ; and the jealousy thus excited against 
the queen of Scots terminated only with the life of the un- 
fortunate Mary. 

The present situation of affairs in Scotland afforded 
Elizabeth a favourable opportunity both of revenging the 



ELIZABETH. 235 

injury, and providing- for her own safety. Popeiy was 
stili the rehgion of the state in that country ; but the 
English preachers, who took shelter in Scotland, on the 
accession of Mary to the throne of England, had filled the 
whole kingdom with horror at the cruelties of the catho- 
lics ; and by their means, the reformation in that country 
had acquired additional strength, and even threatened the 
established religion. 

About this critical time, when the queen-regent, agree- 
able to the orders received from France, had been pro- 
ceeding with rigour against the protestants, John Knox 
arrived from Geneva, where he had imbibed, from his 
commerce with Calvin, the highest fanaticism of his sect, 
augmented by the natural ferocity of his own character. 
He had been invited back to Scotland by the leaders of 
the reformation ; and mounting the pulpit at Perth, during 
the present ferment of men's minds, he declaimed against 
the idolatry and other abominations of the church of Rome, 
and incited his audience to exert themselves for its sub- 
version. A tumult immediately succeeded ; and, in a short 
time, a civil war raged through the whole kingdom. 

The leaders of the reformers, who had assumed the 
title of the congregation, solicited succours from Eliza- 
beth ; and the wise council of the queen did not long 
deliberate in agreeing to this request. She equipped a 
fleet, which consisted of thirteen ships of war ; and she 
assembled at Berwick an army of eight thousand men, 
under the command of lord Gray, warden of the east and 
middle marches. The court of France, sensible of the 
danger, offered the immediate restitution of Calais, pro- 
vided she would not interfere in the affairs of Scotland ; 
but she resolutely rephed, that she would never put an in- 
considerable fishing-town in competition with the safety 
of her dominions. Accordingly, she concluded a treaty of 
mutual defence with the congregation, and receiving from 
the Scots six hostages for the performance of articles, she 
ordered her fleet and army to begin their operations. 

The appearance of the English soon decided the fate of 
the contest: and a treaty was speedily concluded, in 
which it was stipulated that the French should im- 
mediately evacuate Scotland, and that an amnesty ^'c-^A 
should be granted for all past offences. Soon 
after, the parliament abolished the papal jurisdiction in 



936 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Scotland, and established the presbyterian form of disci- 
pline, though Mary refused to sanction their statutes. 

Francis IV. died soon after, and Mary, finding her abode 
in France disagreeable, began to think of returning to her 
native country ; and she applied to Elizabeth for a safe 
conduct, in case she should be obliged to pass through 
England ; but she received for answer, that till she had 
ratified the treaty of Edinburgh, she could expect no favour 
from a person whom she had so much injured. To this 
Mary replied with indignation, " With God's permission, 
I can return to Scotland without her leave ;" and embark- 
ing at Calais, she passed the English fleet in a fog, and 
arrived safe at Leith. Though a widow, yet she was only 
in her nineteenth year ; and by her beauty, and the polite- 
ness of her manners, she was well qualified to gain the 
affections of her subjects, who rejoiced at her arrival among 
them. Her first measures were calculated to establish 
order in a country divided by public factions and private 
feuds ; but there was one circumstance which bereaved 
Mary of the general favour that her agreeable manners 
and judicious deportment entitled her to expect. She was 
still a papist ; and this exposed the helpless queen to un- 
merited contumely, which she bore with benignity and pa- 
tience. In particular, John Knox, who possessed an un- 
controlled authority in the church, and even in the civil 
affairs of the nation, triumphed in the contumelious abuse 
of his sovereign, whom he usually denominated Jezebel. 

The queen of Scots, destitute of the means of resistance, 
and pressed by a turbulent nobility and a bigoted people, 
found that her only expedient for maintaining tranquility 
was the preservation of a friendly connection with Eliza- 
beth. Secretary Lidington was, therefore, sent to Lon- 
don, to pay her compliments to the queen, and express her 
desire of friendship and a good correspondence ; and both 
sovereigns assumed the appearance of a cordial recon- 
ciliation and friendship with each other. 

Elizabeth, finding that Mary was sufficiently depressed 
by the mutinous spirit of her subjects, employed herself 
in regulating the affairs of her own kingdom. She fur- 
nished the arsenals w^ith arms, fortified the frontiers, pro- 
moted trade and navigation, and by building vessels of 
force herself, and suggesting the same to the merchants, 



ELIZABETH. 237 

she acquired to herself the titles of the restorer of naval 
glory, and tlie queen of the northern seas. 

Tliough EHzabeth kept aloof from marriage, yet she 
was not only very averse to appoint any successor to the 
crown, but was resolved, as much as was in her power, 
that no one, who could pretend to the succession, should 
have any heirs or successors. The lady Catherine Gray, 
younger sister to lady Jane, having privately married the 
earl of Hertford, and proving pregnant, they were both 
committed to the tower. As Hertford could not prove 
their nuptials within the time limited, the issue was de- 
clared illegitimate ; and the earl was confined for nine 
years, till the death of his wife, by freeing the queen from 
all apprehension of heirs and claimants from that quarter, 
procured him his liberty. 

At this time, the two great rival powers of Europe were 
Spain and England. The bigotry and intolerant spirit of 
Philip placed him at the head of the catholic party; 
while Elizabeth, from her religious opinions, and iV^o 
the conduct which she pursued, was considered as 
the bulwark and support of the protestants. The civil and 
religious contests by which France was divided, rendered 
that country an object of vigilance both to Philip and Eli- 
zabeth : the former supported the established government 
and religion ; while the latter lent her aid in protecting 
the Hugonots, or protestant party, which had taken arms 
under the prince of Conde. Three thousand English took 
possession of Havre and Dieppe ; but the latter place was 
so little capable of defence, that it was immediately aban- 
doned. The siege of Rouen was already formed by the 
catholics ; and though the English troops in it behaved 
with great gallantry, the place was taken by assault, and 
the whole garrison put to the sword. 

It was expected that the French catholics would imme- 
diately have formed the siege of Havre ; but the intestine 
divisions of the kingdom diverted their attention to another 
object. By the influence of Elizabeth, a considerable 
body of protestants had been levied in Germany ; and the 
Hugonots were enabled to take field against their enemies. 
A famous battle was fought at Dreux ; and in this action, 
Conde and Montmorency, the commanders of the opposite 
armies, by a singular fatality, fell into the hands of their 
enemies. The appearances of victory remained with Guise ; 
but the admiral Coligni, collecting the remaij^a of the army, 



238 HISTORY OF ENGLAND 

and inspiring every breast with his own invincible courage, 
subdued some considerable places in Normandy. 

The expenses incurred by assisting the Hugonots had 
emptied the queen's exchequer, and obliged her to call a 
parliament. As the life of Elizabeth had been en- 
, V^o dangered by the small-pox, a little before the meet- 
ing of that assembly, the commons, on the opening 
of the session, again entreated the queen to choose a hus- 
band, whom they promised faithfully to serve ; or, if she 
entertained any reluctance to the married state, they de- 
sired that the lawful successor might be appointed by an 
act of parliament. 

This subject was very little agreeable to the queen, who, 
considering the inconveniences likely to arise from de- 
claring in favour either of the queen of Scots or the house 
of Suffolk, determined to keep both parties in awe by 
maintaining an ambiguous conduct. She gave, therefore, 
an evasive answer to the commons, whom she told, that 
she had fixed no absolute resolution against marriage ; that 
the difficulties attending the question of the succession 
were so great, that, for the sake of her people, she would 
be contented to remain some time longer in this vale of 
misery ; and that she could not die with satisfaction, till 
she had laid some solid foundation for their future security. 

In the mean time, the duke of Guise had been assassi- 
nated before Orleans, and Conde and Montmorency had 
come to an agreement, that a toleration should be granted 
anew to the protestants. The interests of England were 
disregarded in the treaty ; and Havre, which had been 
some time in possession of the English, was obliged to ca- 
pitulate to the arms of France. Elizabeth, whose usual 
vigour and foresight do not appear in this transaction, was 
now glad to compound matters, by agreeing that the hos- 
tages which the French had previously given for the resti- 
tution of Calais, should be restored on the payment of two 
hundred and twenty thousand crowns, and that both sides 
should retain all their claims and pretensions. 

The peace with Scotland still continued ; and even a 
cordial friendship seemed to have been cemented between 
Elizabeth and Maiy. She always told the queen of Scots^ 
that nothing would satisfy her but her espousing some Eng- 
lish nobleman, which would remove all grounds of jealousy 
and misunderstanding between them. At last, she named 



ELIZABETH. 239 

lord Robert Dudley, now created earl of Leicester, as the 
person on whom she desired that Mary's choice should fall. 

Leicester, the great and powerful favourite of Elizabeth, 
possessed all those exterior qualities which are naturally 
alluring to the fair sex ; and, by means of these accom- 
plishments, he was able to blind the sagacious Elizabeth, 
and to conceal from her the great defects which marked 
his character. He was proud, insolent, and ambitious, 
without honour or principle. The constant and declared 
attachment of Elizabeth to him, had embaldened him to 
aspire to her bed ; and the proposal of espousing Mary 
was by no means agreeable to him. Indeed, it is proba- 
ble, that the queen had no serious intentions of effecting 
this marriage, and that her design was merely to gain 
time, and elude the project of any other alliance ; for when 
Mary, in the hopes of being declared successor to the 
crown, seemed to listen to the proposal, Elizabeth receded 
from her offers, and withdrew the bait which she had 
thrown out to her rival. 

After two years spent in evasions and artifices, Mary 
married lord Darnley, son to the earl of Lenox, her cousin- 
german, by the lady Margaret Douglas, niece to Henry 
VIII. ; and as he was, afVr his spouse, next heir to the 
crown of England, this marriage seemed to strengthen 
and unite both their claims. 

Elizabeth was secretly not displeased with this marriage, 
though she would rather have wished that Mary had re- 
mained single; yet she menaced, protested, and complain- 
ed, as if she had suffered the most grievous injury. It 
served her as a pretence for refusing to acknowledge Ma- 
ry's title to the succession of England, and for encouraging 
the discontents of the Scottish nobility and clergy, to 
whom she promised support in their rebellious enterprises. 

Maiy, however, was no sooner informed of the designs 
forming against her by the duke of Chatelrault, the earls 
of Murray, Argyle, Rothes, and Glencairn, and some 
others, than she assembled her forces, and olaliged those 
rebel noblemen to leave their country, and take shelter in 
England. 

Ehzabeth, when she found the event so much to disap- 
point her expectations, disavowed all connexion with the 
Scottish malcontents, and even drove them from her pre- 
sence. The banished lords had now recourse to the cle- 



240 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

mency of their own sovereign ; and Mary seemed inclined 
to restore them to favour ; but her uncle, the cardinal of 
Jjorraine, to whose opinion she always paid the greatest 
deference, advised her by no means to pardon the protes- 
tant leaders. 

The cardinal of Lorraine had been a chief instrument in 
forming; an association between Philip and Catharine of 
Medicis, for the extermination of the protestants ; and he 
took care that the measures of the queen of Scots should 
correspond with the violent councils embraced by the other 
critliolic princes. A parliament was summoned at Edin- 
burgh for attainting the banished lords, who were saved 
from the rigour of the law only by the ruin of Mary herself. 

The marriage of the queen of Scots with lord Darnley 
was so precipitate, that while she was allured by his youth 
and beauty, and exterior accomplishments, she had not 
observed that the qualities of his mind by no means cor- 
responded with the excellence of his person. He was vio- 
lent, insolent, and ungrateful ; addicted to low pleasures, 
and incapable of the sentiments of love and domestic en- 
dearment. The queen of Scots, in the first effusions of 
her fondness, had granted him the title of king, and had 
joined his name with her own in all public acts ; but ob- 
serving his weakness and vices, she began to see the dan- 
ger of her profuse liberality ; and the young prince, en- 
raged at her imaginaiy neglects, pointed his vengeance 
against every one whom he deemed the cause of this 
change in her measures and behaviour. 

There happened to be in the court one David Rizzio, a 
Piedmontese musician, of m.ean birth, who, by his profes- 
sional talents, and the arts of address, had insinuated him- 
self into the favour of Mary. He became her secretary 
for French despatches ; he was consulted on all occa- 
sions ; favours of honour or emolument could be obtained 
only through his intercession ; and his insolence and ra- 
paciiy drew on himself the hatred of the nobility and of 
the whole kingdom. 

On the change of the queen's sentiments, it was easy 
for Darnley's friends to persuade him that Rizzio was the 
real author of her indifference, and even to excite in his 
mind jealousies of a more dangerous nature ; and the 
king, by the advice of several of the courtiers, determined 
on the assassination of Rizzio. Maiy, in the sixtli month 



of hel* pregnancy, was supping in private with the countess 
of Argyle, Rizzio, and others of her servants, when the 
king entered the room by a private passage, and stood at 
the back of Mary's chair. Lord Ruthven, George Doug- 
las, and other conspirators, rushed in after him ; and Riz- 
zio, aware of the danger, ran behind his mistress for pro- 
tection ; but in spite of her cries, and menaces, and en- 
treaties, Douglas struck a dagger into the body of Rizzio, 
who was then dragged into the anti-chamber, and des 
patched with fifty-six wounds. The unhappy queen, in 
formed of his fate, immediately dried up her tears, -^nd 
said she would weep no more, but think of revenge. 

The conspirators applied to the earl of Bothwell, a new 
favourite, and that nobleman pacified Mary ; but she was 
implacable against her husband, whom she rendered the 
object of universal contempt. He was permitted, howe- 
ver, to have apartments in the castle of Edinburgh, where 
IVlary was delivered of a son ; and sir James Melvil was 
sent with the intelligence of this happy event to England. 
Melvil tells us, that Elizabeth had given a ball to her court 
at Greenwich the evening of his arrival in London, and 
was displaying all her usual spirit and gayety ; but when 
news arrived of the prince of Scotland's birth, all her joy 
was damped, and she complained to some of her atten- 
dants, that the queen of Scots was mother of a son, while 
she was only a barren stock. 

The bii'th of a son gave additional zeal to Mary's par- 
tisans in England, where her conduct also procured her 
universal esteem ; but these flattering prospects were sud- 
denly blasted by her egregious indiscretion at least, or, as 
some are still inclined to suppose, by her atrocious guilt. 

The earl of Bothwell was a man of considerable power 
in Scotland, but of profligate manners. He had acquired 
the favour and entire confidence of Mary ; and reports 
were spread of too great an intimacy between them, though 
Bothwell was a married man. These reports gained ground 
from the increased hatred of the queen towards her hus- 
band, who, sensible of the neglects which he underwent, 
had it in contemplation to retire into France or Spain. 

While affairs were in this unpleasant situation, Darnley 

was seized with an illness of an extraordinary nature ; 

and the queen visiting him during his sickness, treated him 

with great tenderness, and a cordial reconciliation seemed 

21 



242 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

to have been brought about between them. The king* 
naturally uxorious, put himself implicitly into her liands ; 
and as the concourse of people about the court might dis- 
turb him in his infirm state of health, Mary assigned him 
a lodging in a solitary house, called the Kirk of Field. In 
this situation, the queen gave him marks of kindness and 
attention, and lay some nights in a room below his ; but, 
on the 9th of February, she told him, that she would pass 
that night in the palace, because the marriage of one of 
her seiTants was there to be celebrated in her presence. 
About two o'clock in the morning, the whole city of Edin- 
burgh was alarmed by a great noise ; and it was discover- 
ed, that the house in which the king lay had been blown 
up by gunpowder, and that his dead body had been carried 
by the violence of the explosion into a neighbouring field. 

The general opinion was, that Bothwell was the author 
of this horrible crime ; and the earl of Lenox, Darnley's 
fcither, implored speedy justice against him and the other 
assassins. Mary allowed only fifteen days for the exami- 
nation of this important afikir; and as Bothwell still pos- 
sessed the confidence of the queen, and enjoyed his former 
authority, Lenox entertained just apprehensions from the 
power, insolence, and temerity of his enemy. As, there- 
fore, neither accuser nor witness appeared at the trial, 
Bothwell was absolved from the king's murder ; but the 
verdict in his favour was attended with circumstances 
which strongly confirmed the general opinion of his guilt. 
Mary, having gone to visit her son at Stirling, was seized 
by Bothwell, and ostensibly carried off against her will, 
with the avowed design of forcing her to yield to his pur- 
pose. Some of the nobility sent the queen a private mes- 
sage, that if she lay under force, they would use all their 
eftbrts to rescue her ; but the queen professed herself satis- 
fied with Bothwell's conduct, and granted him a pardon 
for the violence committed on her person, and for all other 
crimes. 

Soon after this infamous transaction, Bothwell obtained 
a divorce from his wife ; and Mary, with indecent precipi- 
tation, raised him to her bed and to her throne. Elizabeth 
remonstrated, by friendly letters and messages, against the 
marriage ; the court of France did the same ; but Mary 
paid no regard to the advice she received, and seemed to 
scorn the united censures of Europe. 



ELIZABETH. 243 

At length the spirit of the nation was roused ; and lord 
Hume, with a body of eight hundred hors^e, suddenly en- 
i^ironed the queen of Scots and Both well in the castle of 
Bothwick. They found means, however, of making their 
escape ; but Mary was obliged to put herself into the hands 
of the confederates. She was conducted to Edinburgh, 
amidst the insults of the populace, who reproached her for 
her crimes, and who held before her eyes, v/hich way so- 
ever she turned, a banner, on which were painted the mur- 
der of her husband and the distress of her infant son. 
Bothwell, meanwhile, found means to reach the Orkneys, 
whence he escaped to Denmark, where he was thrown in- 
to prison, and losing his senses, died about ten years after, 
in extreme misery. 

Mary was sent under a guard to the castle of Lochleven, 
where the associated lords refused Throgmorton, the Eng- 
lish ambassador, all access to her ; and various schemes 
were proposed for the treatment of the captive queen. In 
the mean time, the earl of Murray was appointed regent, 
and Mary signed a deed, by which she resigned the crown 
in favour of her son. In consequence of this forced re- 
nunciation, the young prince was proclaimed king, by the 
name of James VI. ; and he was soon after crowned at 
Stirling, where the earl of Morton took the coro- 
nation oath in his name. Maiy, however, found ^V^ 
means to escape from Lochleven: and being joined 
by many of the nobility, an army of six thousand men was 
assembled, in a few days, under her standard. The regent 
instantly took the field against her ; and, coming to an en- 
gagement at Langside, near Glasgow, the queen's forces 
were entirely defeated. 

The unhappy Mary fled from the field of battle, with a 
few adherents, to the borders of England ; and rashly con- 
fiding to some late specious professions of Elizabeth, she 
embarked on board a fishing boat in Galloway, and landed 
the same day at Workington, in Cumberland ; whence 
she immediately despatched a messenger to London, to 
notify her arrival, to request leave to visit EUzabeth, and 
to crave her protection. 

Elizabeth, seeing her rival thus in her power, attended 
'•ather to the dictates of policy than generosity. She sent 
lord Scrope and sir Francis Knollis to inform her, that her 
request of being allowed to visit their sovereign could not 



244 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

be complied with, till she had cleared herself of her hus- 
band's murder. On receiving this intelligence, Mary burst 
into tears ; and the necessity of her situation extorted from 
her a declaration, that she would submit her cause to the 
arbitration of her. sister of England. The regent of Scot- 
land, too, professed his readiness to abide by the determi- 
nation of Elizabeth. Mary was removed to Bolton, in 
Yorkshire, and placed under the care of lord Scrope ; and 
the issue of this affair was regarded as an object of the 
greatest moment to the interests and security of Elizabeth. 
Commissioners were appointed on the part of England, 
of Mary, and of the regent, representing the king and 
kingdom of Scotland, and met at York, where this grand 
inquiry commenced. Under pretext, however, that the 
distance from her person retarded the proceedings of the 
commissioners, Elizabeth removed the conferences to 
Hampton-court. 

When Murray, the regent, was called upon for proofs 
of his charge against Mary, he produced before the com- 
missioners some love-letters and sonnets, and a promise of 
marriage to Bothwell, before his trial and acquittal, all 
written in the hand of the queen of Scots. These were 
incontestible evidences of her imprudence, and of her cri- 
minal correspondence with Bothwell, however they may 
be considered in regard to her consent to the murder ol 
her husband ; but as Mary had instructed her commis- 
sioners not to make a defence, if any thing were advanced 
that touched her honour, as she was a sovereign princess, 
and could not be subject to a foreign tribunal, though she 
professed her readiness to justify her innocence to Eliza- 
beth in person, the conferences terminated, and no deci- 
sion was given. 

The queen of Scots was now removed from Bolton to 
Tutbury, in Staffordshire, and put under the ^;are of the 
earl of Shrewsbury. Elizabeth entertained hopes, that she 
would either resign the crown, or associate her son with 
her in the government, and leave the administration in 
the hands of Murray during her son's minority ; but the 
high spirited Mary declared, that her last words should be 
those of a queen of Scotland ; and she insisted either that 
Elizabeth should assist her in recovering her authority, or 
give her liberty to retire into France. Elizabeth, how- 



ELIZABETH, 245 

ever, refused both these proposals, and determined to de- 
tain her still a captive. 

The duke of Norfolk, the only peer that enjoyed the 
highest title of nobility, and the most powerful subject in 
England, was at this time a widower ; and his marriage 
with the queen of Scots appeared desirable to several of 
his friends and those of that princess. The scheme was 
made known to Norfolk, who, afraid of disclosing his in- 
tentions to Elizabeth, endeavoured to increase his interest 
in the kingdom, by engaging the nobility to favour the 
measure. Mary was applied to on the subject, and re- 
turned a favourable answer. The kings of France and 
Spain were secretly consulted, and expressed their appro- 
bation of the measure ; and though Elizabeth's consent 
was always held out as a previous condition of finishing 
this alliance, it was apparently the duke's intention to 
render his party too formidable to be resisted. 

Elizabeth was not entirely unacquainted with the plan, 
and even intimated to the duke the necessity of caution ; 
but he wanted either prudence or courage to make known 
to her his full intentions ; and when the court of England 
received certain information of this dangerous combina- 
tion, the alarm became extreme. Norfolk and many of 
his friends were arrested ; and the queen of Scots was 
removed to Coventry, and all access to her, for a time, 
was more strictly prohibited. 

The conspirators, among whom were the earls of Nor- 
thumberland and Westmoreland, appealed to arms ; and 
about four thousand foot and sixteen hundred horse took 
the field, and expected the concurrence of all the catholics 
in England. The duke of Norfolk, however, not only dis- 
countenanced these proceedings, but employed all his in- 
terest to suppress the rebellion ; which being effected in a 
short time, the queen was so well pleased with his beha- 
viour, that she released him from the tower, and only ex- 
acted a promise from him, not to proceed any farther in 
his negotiations with the queen of Scots. 

After an interval of five years, a new parliament was as- 
sembled, in which appeared the dawn of spirit and liberty 
among the English. The puritans agitated several ques- 
tions respecting religion ; and Strickland, a member of 
the house of commons, moved a bill for the amendment of 
21* 



246 HISTORY or bnglanb. 

the liturgy* This was highly resented by the queen, who 
was, if possible, still more jealous of what regarded reli- 
gion, than of matters of state. She summoned Strickland 
before the council, and prohibited him from appearing in 
the house of commons ; but finding that her conduct was 
likely to excite a great ferment, she sent him permission 
to give his attendance in parliament. Elizabeth, however, 
would not allow the parliament to discuss any matters of 
state, and still less to meddle with the church. For a long 
period, the chief business for which parliament was as- 
sembled was, to grant subsidies, to attaint and punish the 
obnoxious nobility, and to countenance such great efforts 
of power as might be deemed somewhat exceptionable, 
when they proceeded entirely from the sovereign. The 
queen J as she was determined to yield none of her power, 
was very cautious in asking the parliament for any supply. 
She endeavoured, by a rigid frugality, to make her ordi- 
nary revenues suffice for the necessities of the crown ; or 
she employed her prerogative, and procured money by the 
granting of patents and monopolies, or by some such 
ruinous expedient. 

The bigotry of Philip, and the inhuman severity of his 
representative, the duke of Alva, had filled the Low Coun- 
tries with confiscation, imprisonment, exile, and death. 
Elizabeth gave protection to all the Flemings who took 
shelter in her dominions, and reaped the advantage of in- 
troducing: into Eng-land some useful manufactures which 
were before unknown. Alva, whose measures were ever 
violent, -entered into a scheme with the Spanish ambassa- 
dor, and one Rodolphi, a Florentine merchant, for uniting 
the catholics and Mary queen of Scots in a confederacy 
against Elizabeth. The duke of Norfolk, despairing of 
the confidence and favour of Elizabeth, was tempted to 
violate his word, and to open anew his correspondence 
with the captive queen. A promise of marriage was re- 
newed between them ; and the duke gave his consent to 
enterprises still more criminal. 

The new conspiracy had hitherto escaped the vigilance 
')f Elizabeth, and of Cecil, now lord Burleigh ; but one of 
the duke's servants betrayed his master ; and the evidence 
of the bishop of Ross proved the guilt of Norfolk beyond 
all doubt. A jury of twentv-five peers passed sentence 



ELIZABETH. 247 

upon him ; but the queen hesitated to put the sen- 
tence in execution. At length, after a delay of four ^ V^^ 
months, the fatal warrant was signed ; and Nor- 
folk died, acknowledging the justice of his sentence. 

The queen of Scots was charged by Elizabeth as the 
cause of these disturbances ; and though Mary endeav^our- 
ed to justify herself, the queen was little satisfied with her 
apology, and the parliament applied for her immediate 
trial ; but Elizabeth forbade them to proceed farther in the 
affair, and only increased the rigour and strictness of her 
confinement. 

The same views which engaged the queen to support the 
Hugonots in France, would have led her to assist the dis- 
tressed protestants in the Low Countries ; but the mighty 
power of Philip kept her in awe, and obliged her to deny 
the Flemish exiles an entrance into her dominions. The 
people, however, enraged by the cruelty, oppression, and 
persecution under which they suffered, flew to arms. 
Holland and Zealand revolted ; and under the auspices of 
the prince of Orange, the whole Batavian provinces united 
in a league against the tyranny of Spain. By a solemn 
embassy, the Flemings offered Elizabeth the sovereignty 
of these provinces, if she would exert her power in their 
defence ; but as she was never ambitious of conquests, or 
of new acquisitions, she declined the proffered sovereignty. 
The queen, however, sent the revolters a sum of money, 
and concluded a treaty with them, in which she stipulated 
to assist them with five thousand foot, and a thousand horse, 
at the charge of the Flemings. It was farther agreed, that 
the new States, as they began to call themselves, should 
enter into no alliance without her consent, and if any dis- 
cord should arise among them, it was to be referred to her 
arbitration. She was desirous of making the king of Spain 
believe that her sole motive for entering into a treaty with 
the States, was to prevent them from throwing themselves 
into the arms of France ; and Philip dissembled his resent- 
ment against the queen, and waited for an opportunity of 
taking his revenge. 

Elizabeth was extremely anxious to support an interest 
in Scotland, because that country alone afforded her ene- 
mies the means of attacking her, and because she was sen- 
sible that the Guises had engaged Mary to have recourse 
to the powerful protection of Philip, That prince, under 



248 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

the name of the pope, sent a body of seven hundred Spa- 
niards and Italians into Ireland ; but they were soon obhged 
to surrender ; and when the Enghsh ambassador complain- 
ed of the invasion, he was answered by similar complaints 
of the piracies committed by Drake in the new World. 

This brave officer, setting sail from Plymouth in 1577, 
with four ships and a pinnace, on board of which were one 
hundred and sixty-four men, passed the Straits of Magel- 
lan, attacked the Spaniards in South America, and cap- 
tured many rich prizes. He was the first Englishman 
that completed the circumnavigation of the globe ; and he 
returned safely to his native country, after a voyage of 
more than three years. 

In order to avert the resentment of Spain, the queen 

was persuaded to disavow the enterprise ; bat she 

^'"oA determined to countenance this gallant officer, on 

whom she conferred the honour of knighthood, and 

accepted of a banquet at Greenwich, on board the shi]» 

which had performed such a memorable voyage. 

The duke of Alen^on, now created duke of Anjou, nearly 
Iwenty^five years younger than the queen, became a suitor 
of Elizabeth. He came over to England in order to pro- 
secute his suit ; and the reception which he met with made 
him expect complete success. On the anniversary of her 
coronation, the queen was observed to take a ring from 
her own finger, and put it upon his : and all the specta- 
tors concluded, that in this ceremony, she had given him 
a promise of marriage, and was even desirous of signify- 
ing her intentions to all the world. Reflections, however, 
on the probable consequences of this marriage, filled the 
mind of the queen with anxiety and irresolution ; but, at 
length, prudence and ambition prevailed over her ajffec- 
tions ; and she dismissed the duke with some apologies. 
He expressed great disgust on his leaving her, and uttered 
many curses on the mutability of women and of islanders. 
The affairs of Scotland again strongly engaged the at- 
tention of the queen. A conspiracy of the discontented 
nobles was formed, probably with the concurrence 
1 kft2 ^^ Elizabeth, for seizing the person of James at 
Ruthven, a seat belonging to the earl of Gowry, one 
of the conspirators. The king wept when he found him- 
self a prisoner ; but the master of Glamis said, " No mat- 
ter for his tears : it is better that boys weep than bearded 



ELIZABETH. 249 

men." This expression James never forgave ; but he ac- 
quiesced in his own detention, and agreed to summon both 
an assembly of the church, and a convention of the estates, 
in order to ratify that enterprise. 

The queen of Scots had often made overtures to EHza- 
beth, which had been entirely neglected ; but hearing of 
James's confinement, she wrote in the most pathetic man- 
ner to th© queen, entreating her to raise them both from 
their present melancholy situation, and reinstate them in 
that liberty and authority to which they were entitled. This 
humble application produced little effect, though some os- 
tensible steps were taken ; but James, impatient of re- 
straint, escaped from his keepers, and fleeing to St. An- 
drews, summoned his friends and partisans to attend him. 
The opposite party found themselves unable to resist, and 
were offered a pardon on their submission. Some of them 
accepted the terms ; but the greater part left the country, 
and took shelter in Ireland or England, where they were 
Drotected by Elizabeth. 

The queen sent Walsingham into Scotland, on purpose 
to penetrate the character of .Tames ; and as James excel- 
led in general discourse and conversation, that minister 
conceived a higher opinion of his talents than he really de- 
served ; and from the favourable report of his capacity, 
Elizabeth was inclined to treat the young king with more 
respect than she had hitherto done. The revolutions in 
Scotland, however, would have been little regarded, had 
not the zeal of the catholics daily threatened her with 
some dangerous insurrection. Many of the plots which 
had been discovered, were imputed to the intrigues of 
Mary ; and the parliament passed a resolution " to defend 
the queen, to revenge her death, or any injury committed 
against her, and to exclude from the throne all claimants, 
what title soever they might possess, by whose suggestion, 
or for whose behoof, any violence should be offered to her 
majesty." The queen of Scots was sensible that this was 
intended against her ; and to remove all suspicion from 
herself, she desired leave to subscribe this resolution. 

During the same session, a conspiracy was discovered, 
which greatly increased the animosity against the catho- 
lics. One William Parry, who had received the 
queen's pardon for a capital crime, was instigated -I'^^l 
by some Romanist of high rank and authority to 



250 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

attempt the life of the queen, by shootiDg at her while shp 
was taking the air on horseback. The conspiracy, how- 
ever, was betrayed by one of his associates ; and Parry 
being thrown into prison, confessed the guilt, and suffered 
the punishment of death. 

About the same time, the prince of Orange perished at 
Delft, by the hands of an assassin ; and the States sent a 
solemn embassy to London, and made anew an offer to the 
queen, of acknowledging her for their sovereign, on con- 
dition of obtaining her protection and assistance. Eliza- 
beth, however, again declined the sovereignty, but entered 
into an alliance with the States, and sent the earl of Lei- 
cester with a considerable army to their relief. 

The queen, while she provoked so powerful an enemy 
as the king of Spain, by her open aid to the revolted Fle- 
mings, took care to secure herself on the side of Scotland, 
by forming an alliance with James for the mutual defence 
of their dominions, and of their religion, now menaced by 
the open combination of all the catholic powers of Europe. 
But the unfortunate Mary, whose impatience of confine- 
ment and unsubdued spirit, together with her zeal for 
popery, impelled to the most desperate acts, engaged in 
designs against Elizabeth, which afforded her enemies a 
reason or pretence for effecting her complete ruin. 

Ballard, a Romish priest, encouraged by the hopes of 
succours from the pope, the king of Spain, and the duke of 
Guise, came over to England, and bent his endeavours to 
effect at once an assassination, an insurrection, and an in- 
vasion. The first person to whom he confided his inten- 
tions was Anthony Babington, a young gentleman of Der- 
byshire, who was ardent in the cause of Mary and of the 
catholic religion. Babington employed himself in increa- 
sing the number of the associates in this desperate under- 
taking ; and he communicated the project to Mary, who 
approved highly of the design, and who observed, that the 
death of Elizabeth was necessary, before any other attempt 
should be made. Ballard, however, being arrested, his 
confederates became alarmed, and took to flight ; but be- 
ing seized, they were tried, condemned, and executed. 

The lesser conspirators being thus depatched, measures 
were taken for the trial of the queen of Scots, who was 
conducted to Fotheringay castle, in the county of North- 
ampton. A commission, consisting of forty noblemen and 



ELIZABETH. 251 

privy-counsellors, was appointed and empowered to pass 
sentence on Mary, who was described in the instrument as 
late queen of Scots, and heiress to James V. of Scotland. 

On this awful occasion, Mary behaved with great dig- 
nity. She protested her innocence, and declared that 
Elizabeth had no authority over her, who was an indepen- 
dent sovereign, and not amenable to the laws of England. 
Her objections, however, were over-ruled ; her letters, and 
the confessions of the conspirators, were produced in evi- 
dence against her ; and a few days after, sentence of death 
was pronounced against her. Both houses of parliament 
ratified this sentence, which was certainly illegal, if not 
unjust ; and they urged the queen to consent to its publi- 
cation and execution, 

Elizabeth, however, affected great reluctance to execute 
the sentence against Mary, and asked if it were not possi- 
ble to secure the public tranquility by some other expe- 
dient than the death of the queen of Scots ; but when 
foreign powers interfered, and interceded in behalf of the 
unfortunate Mary, Elizabeth became obdurate, and deter- 
mined to execute the sentence. The interposition of 
James, who remonstrated in very severe terms in favour of 
his mother, was unavailing j and Elizabeth, tired with im- 
portunity, and dreading the consequences, ordered Davi- 
son, her secretary, privately to draw a warrant for the 
execution of the queen of Scots ; which, she afterwards 
said, she intended to keep by her, in case any attempt 
should be made to rescue Maiy. She signed the warrant, 
and commanded Davison to procure the great seal to be 
affixed to it ; but when Davison told her that the warrant 
had passed the great seal, she blamed his precipitation. 
Davison acquainted the council with the transaction ; and 
they endeavoured to persuade him to send off the warrant, 
promising to take on themselves the whole blame of the 
measure. The secretar)-, not sufficiently aware of their 
intention, complied with the advice ; and the warrant was 
despatched to the earls of Shrewsbury and Kent, and some 
others, ordering them to see the sentence executed on the 
queen of Scots. 

Mary, informed of this commission, though somewhat 
surprised, betrayed no symptoms of fear. The night be- 
fore her execution, she called in all her servants, drank to 
them, and bade them a solemn farewell. Next morning 



252 ■ HISTORY OP ENGLAND* 

she dressed herself in a rich habit of silk and velvet ; and 
having declared her resolution to die in the ancient catho-^ 
lie and Roman religion, her head was severed from her 
body by the executioner. Thus perished, in the 
^ Vq^ forty-fifth year of her age, and the nineteenth of 
her captivity in England, Mary, queen of Scots, a 
woman of great accomplishments, both of body and mind. 
The beauty of her person, and the charms of her address 
and conversation, rendered her the most amiable of wo- 
men. Whether we consider her faults as imprudences or 
crimes, certain it is, that she was betrayed into actions 
which can with difficulty be accounted for, and which ad- 
mit of no apology or extenuation. In her numerous mis- 
fortunes, we forget her faults ; and the accomplishments 
which she possessed render us insensible to the errors of 
her conduct. 

When Elizabeth was informed of the execution of Ma- 
ry, she affected the utmost surprise and indignation. She 
wrote an exculpatory letter to James ; and she committed 
Davison to prison, and ordered him to be tried for a mis- 
demeanor. He was condemned to imprisonment during 
the pleasure of the queen, and to pay a fine which reduced 
him to beggary. 

The dissimulation of Elizabeth, however, was too gross 
to deceive any person ; and James and his nobles breath- 
ed nothing but revenge. When, however, James began 
coolly to reflect on the consequences of a war with Eng- 
land, and that he might thereby forfeit the certain prospect 
of his succession to the English throne, he stifled his re- 
sentments, and gradually entered into a good con*espon- 
dence with the court of England. 

While Elizabeth insured tranquility from the attempts 
of her nearest neighbour, accounts were received of the 
vast preparations made by the Spaniards for the invasion 
of England, and for the entire conquest of this kingdom* 
In all the ports of Sicily, Naples, Spain, and Portugal, 
Philip had for some time been equipping vessels of un- 
common size and force, and filling thj^ with stores and 
provisions. The most renowned nobility of Italy and 
Spain were ambitious of sharing in the honour of this 
great ^^^terprise ; and the Spaniards, ostentatious of their 
power, anu "onfident of success, had already denominated 
this armament *' The Invincible Annada." 



ELIZABETH. 253 

Elizabeth, finding that she must contend for her crown 
with the whole force of Spain, made preparations for re- 
sistance ; and though her force seemed very inadequate 
to oppose so powerful an enemy, every place in tlie king- 
dom discovered the greatest readiness in defending their 
liberty and rehgion, by contributing ships, men, and mo- 
ney. The gentry and nobility vied with each other in the 
same generous career ; and all the loans which the queen 
demanded were immediately granted. 

Lord Howard, of Effingham, a man of distinguished 
abilities, was appointed admiral of the fleet ; and Drake, 
Hawkins, and Frobisher, the most renowned seamen in 
Europe, served under him. A small squadron, commanded 
by lord Seymour, second son of the protector Somerset, lay 
off Dunkirk, in order to intercept the duke of Parma. 

The troops were disposed along the south coast ; and a 
body of twenty*two thousand foot, and a thousand horse, 
under the command of the earl of Leicester, was stationed 
at Tilbury, in order to cover the capital. The principal 
army consisted of thirty-four thousand foot, and two thou- 
sand horse, commanded by lord Hunsdon ; and these were 
reserved for guarding the queen^s person, and marching 
whithersoever the enemy should appear. Men of reflec- 
tion, however, entertained the greatest apprehensions, 
when they considered the force of fifty thousand veteran 
Spaniards, under the duke of Parma, the most consum- 
mate general of the age. 

TJkie queen was sensible that next to her popularity, the 
firmest support of her throne consisted in the zeal of the 
people fo-r the protestant religion, and their abhorrence of 
popery. She reminded the English of their former danger 
from the tyranny of Spain ; and of the bloody massacres 
in the Indies, and the unrelenting executions in the Low 
Countries ; and a list was published of the several instru- 
ments of torture, Avith which, it was pretended, the Spanish 
armada was loaded. The more to excite the martial spi- 
rit of the nation, the queen appeared on horseback in the 
camp at Tilbury ; and riding through the lines, she ex- 
horted the soldiers to remember their duty to their countiy 
and their God, declaring that she would rather perish in 
battle than survive the ruin and slavery of her people. 
By this spirited conduct she excited the admiration of the 
soldiery ; the attachment to her became enthusiastic ; and 
22 



254 HISTORY OP EKfGLAND. 

all swore to defend the glorious cause in which they were 
engaged* 

The armada, after sailing from Lisbon, suffered consi- 
derably from storm ; but the damages being repaired, the 
Spaniards again put to sea. The fleet consisted of one 
hundred and thirty vessels, of which one hundred were 
galleons, and of larger size than any before seen in Europe. 
On board were upwards of thirty thousand men, and two 
thousand six hundred and thirty great pieces of brass 
ordnance* Effingham, who was stationed at Plymouth, 
had just time to get out of port, when he saw the armada 
advancing towards him, disposed in the form of a crescent, 
and stretching the distance of seven miles from one extre- 
mity to the other. As the armada advanced up the chan- 
nel, the English hung on its rear, and soon found that the 
largeness of the Spanish ships was no advantage to them. 
Their bulk exposed them the more to the fire of the ene- 
my ; while their cannon, placed too high, passed over the 
heads of the English. 

The armada had now reached Calais, and cast anchor, 
in expectation that the duke of Parina would put to sea 
and join them. The English admiral, however, filling 
eight of his smaller ships with combustible materials, sent 
them one after another into the midst of the enemy. The 
Spaniards were so much alarmed, that they immediately 
cut- their cables, and fled with the greatest precipitation. 
The English, whose fleet now amounted to one hundred 
and forty sail, fell upon them next morning while in con- 
fusion ; and, besides doing great damage to other ships, 
they took or destroyed about twelve of the enemy. 

The Spanish admiral, defeated in many rencounters, 
and perceiving the inevitable destruction of his fleet, pre- 
pared to return homewards ; but conducting his shattered 
ships by the circuitous route of Scotland and Ireland, a 
violent tempest overtook them near the Orkneys. Many 
of the vessels were wrecked on the western isles of Scot- 
land, and on the coast of Ireland ; and not one half of this 
mighty armament returned to Spain. 

The discomfiture of the armada begat in the nation a 
kind of enthusiastic passion for enterprises against 
^ *.,Q^ Spain ; and ships were hired, as well as arms pro- 
vided, at the expense of the adventurers. Among 
those who signalized themselves in these expeditions, were 



ELIZABETH. 255 

Drake and Norris, Grenville, Howard, and the earls of 
Essex and Cumberland. 

The war in the Netherlands still continued ; and the 
king of Navarre, a protestant, ascending the throne of 
France by the title of Henry IV., a great part of the no- 
bility immediately deserted him, and the king of Spain en- 
tertained views either of dismembering the French mo- 
narchy, or of annexing the whole to his own dominions. 
In this emergency, Henry addressed himself to Elizabeth, 
who sent him aid both in men and money ; and the Eng- 
lish auxiliaries acquired a great reputation in several en- 
terprises, and revived in France the fame of their ancient 
valour. 

The war did great injury to Spain ; but it was attended 
with considerable expense to England ; and the queen 
summoned a parliament in order to obtain a supply. How- 
ever, it is evident that Elizabeth either thought her autho- 
rity so established as to need no concessions in return, or 
she rated her prerogative above money. When sir Edward 
Coke, the speaker, made to her the then three usual re- 
quests of freedom from arrests, access to her person, and 
liberty of speech, she declared that she would not impeach 
the freedom of their persons, nor refuse them access to her, 
provided it were upon urgent occasions, and when she was 
at leisure from other important affairs ; but that they were 
not to speak every one what he listeth, and that the privi- 
lege of speech extended no farther than a liberty of ay or no. 

Henry IV. renounced the protestant religion, and was 
received by the prelates of his party into the catholic 
church ; and Elizabeth assisted that monarch to break the 
league which had been formed against him, and which, 
after his conversion to popery, gradually dissolved. 

Though the queen made war against Philip in France 
and the Low Countries, yet the severest blows which he 
received from England, proceeded from nav^ enterprises. 
James Lancaster, with three ships and a pinnace, took 
thirty-nine Spanish ships, sacked Fernambouc on 
the coast of Brazil, and brought home a great quan- | '-q I 
tity of treasure. Sir Walter Raleigh was less suc- 
cessful in an expedition to Guiana, a country which he un- 
dertook to explore at his own expense. Sir Francis 
Drake engaged in an enterprise against Panama ; and the 
Spaniards obliged the English to return without effecting 



356 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

any thing ; and Drake, from the vexation of this disap- 
pointment, was seized with a distemper, of which he died. 

This unsuccessful enterprise in America determined the 
English to attack the Spanish dominions in Europe. A 
powerful fleet of one hundred and seventy vessels, cariy- 
mg upwards of seven thousand soldiers, besides Dutch 
auxiliaries, set sad from Plymouth ; and after a fruitless 
attempt to land at St. Sebastian, on the western side of 
Cadiz, resolved to attack the ships and galleys in the bay. 
This attempt was deemed rash ; but the earl of Essex 
strenuously recommended the enterprise. Effingham, the 
commander in chief, appointed sir Walter Raleigh, and 
lord Thomas Howard, to lead the van ; but Essex, contra- 
ry to the injunctions of the admiral, pressed forward into 
the thickest of the fight ; and landing his men at the fort of 
Puntal, he immediately marched to Cadiz, which the im- 
petuous valour of the English soon carried, sword in hand. 
The generosity of Essex, not inferior to his valour, induced 
him to stop the slaughter. The English obtained immense 
plunder ; but they missed a much greater, by the Spanish 
admiral setting fire to the ships, in order to prevent their 
falling into the hands of the enemy. It was computed 
that the loss which the Spaniards sustained by this enter- 
prise amounted to twenty millions of ducats. 

The king of France concluded a peace with Spain ; 
and ♦:lie queen knew that she could finish the war on 
equitable teraas with Philip. Burleigh advised her to em- 
brace pacific measures ; but Essex, whose passion for glo- 
ry rendered him desirous that the war should continue, 
urged that her majesty had no reason to fear the issue of 
the contest, and that it would be dishonourable in her to 
desert the Hollanders, till their affairs were placed in 
greater security. The advice of Essex was more agree- 
able to Elizabeth ; and the favourite seemed daily to ac- 
quire an ascendant over the minister. Had he, indeed, 
been endued with caution and temper, he might soon 
have engrossed the entire confidence of his mistress ; but 
his lofty spirit could ill submit to implicit deference ; and 
in a dispute with the queen, he was so heated by the argu- 
ment, and so entirely forgetful of the rules both of civility 
and duty, that he turned his back upon her in a contemp- 
tuous manner. Elizabeth, naturally prone to anger, in- 
stantly gave him a box on the ear, adding a passionate ex- 



ELIZABETH. 25T 

pvession suitable to liis impertinence. Instead of recol- 
lecting himself, and making the submission due to her sex 
and station, Essex clapped his hand on his sword, sworo 
that he would not bear such usage, were it from Henry 
the Eighth himself, and immediately withdrew^ from court. 

The queen's partiality, however, soon reinstated him in 
his former favour ; and the death of Burleigh, equally re- 
gretted by his sovereign and the people, seemed to ensure 
him tlte confidence of Elizabeth. 

Soon after the death of this wise and faithful minister, 
Philip the Second expired at Madrid, This haughty 
prince, desirous of an accommodation with his revolted 
subjects in the Netherlands, had transferred to his daugh- 
terj married to the archduke Albert, the title to the Low 
Countries ; but the States considered this deed only as 
the change of a name ; and the secret opposition of France, 
as w^ell as the avowed efforts of England, continued to 
operate figainst the progress of Albert, as they had done 
against that of Philip, 

The authority of the English in the affairs of Ireland had 
hitherto been little more than nominal. Instead of invi- 
ting the Irish to adopt the more civilized customs of their 
conquerors, they even refused to communicate to them 
the privilege of their laws, and every where marked them 
out as aliens and enemies ; and the treatment which they 
experienced rendered them such, and made them daily 
became more untractable and more dangerous. Insurrec- 
tions and rebellions had been frequent in Ireland ; and 
Elizabeth tried several expedients for reducing that coun- 
try to greater order and submission ; but these expedients 
■were unsuccessful, and Ireland became formidable to the 
English. 

Hugh O'Neale, who had been raised by the queen to the 
dignity of earl of Tyrone, embraced the resolution of 
raising an open rebellion, and entered into a coiTespon- 
dence with Spain, whence he procured a supply of arms 
and ammunition. A victory obtained over sir Henry Bag- 
nal, who had advanced to relieve a fort besieged by the 
rebels, raised the reputation of Tyrone, who assumed the 
character of the deliverer of his country. The 
English council were now sensible that the rebel- irqq 
lion of Ireland should be opposed by vigorous mea- 
sures ; and the queen appointed Essex governor of tha 
22* 



258 HISTORY OF ENGLANEr. 

country, by the title of lord-lieutenant, and gave him the 
eommand of twenty thousand foot, and two thousand horse. 

On his landing at Dublin, Essex was guilty of a capital 
error, which was the ruin of his enterprise,- Instead of 
leading his forces immediately into Ulster against Tyrone, 
the chief enemy, he wasted the season of action in redu- 
cing Munster ; and when he assembled his troops for an 
expedition into Ulster, the army was so averse to this 
enterprise, and so terrified with the reputation of the Irish 
rebel, that many of them counterfeited sickness, and many 
of them deserted. Convinced that it would be impossible 
for him to effect any thing against an enemy who, though 
superior in number, was determined to avoid a decisive 
action, Essex hearkened to a message sent him by Tyrone 
for a conference. The generals met without any of their 
attendants ; a river ran between them, into which Tyroncj 
entered to the depth of his saddle ; but Essex stood on the 
opposite bank. A cessation of arms was concluded till 
the next spring, renewable from six weeks to six weeks f 
but which might be broken by either party on giving a 
fortnight's notice. Essex also received from Tyrone pro- 
posals of peace, in which that rebel had inserted many 
unreasonable conditions; and, it was afterwards suspected, 
that he had commenced a very unjustifiable correspon- 
dence with the enemy. 

Elizabeth was highly provoked at the unexpected issue 
of this great and expensive enterprise ; and Essex, in- 
formed of the queen's anger, set out for England, and ar- 
rived at court before any one was ajjprised of his inten- 
tions. Though covered with dirt and sweat, he hastened 
to the presence-chamber, and thence to the privy-cham- 
ber ; nor stopped till he was in the queen's bed chamber, 
who had just risen. After some private conversation with 
her, he retired with great satisfaction ; but, though the 
queen had thus been taken by surprise, she ordered him to 
be confined to his chamber, and to be twice examined By 
the council. 

Essex professed an entire submission to the queen's will, 
and declared his intention of retiring into the country, re- 
mote from the court and business : but, though he affect- 
ed to be cured of his ambition, the vexation of this disap- 
pointment, and of the triumph gained by his enemies, 
threw him into a distemper which seemed to endanger his 



ELIZABETH. 359 

life. The queen, alarmed with his situation, ordered her 
physicians to attend him, and also to deliver him a message, 
which was probably more efficacious in promoting his re- 
covery, than any medicines that could be prescribed. Af- 
ter soiTie interval, Elizabeth allowed her favourite to retire 
to his own house, where, in the company of his countess, 
he passed his time in the pursuits of elegant literature. 

Essex possessed a monopoly of sweet wines ; and as his 
patent was nearly expiring, he patiently expected that the 
queen would renew it ; but Elizabeth, whose temper was 
somewhat haughty and severe, denied his request. Essex, 
whose patience was exhausted, burst at once all restraints 
of prudence ; and observed, that " the queen was now 
grown an old woman, and became as crooked in her mind 
as her body." Some court ladies carried this story to the 
queen, who was highlv incensed against him ; but his 
secret applications to the king of Scots, her heir and suc- 
cessor, were still more provoking to Elizabetli than the 
sarcasm of her age and deformity. James, however, dis- 
approved of any violent method of extorting from the 
queen an immediate declaration of his right of succession ; 
and Essex, disappointed in his project, formed a select 
council of malcontents at Drury-house, where he delibe- 
rated with them concerning the method of taking arms, 
chiefly for the piu'pose of removing his enemies and set- 
tling a new plan of government. 

Receiving a summons to attend the council at the trea- 
surer's house, Essex concluded that the conspiracy was 
discovered, or at least suspected. He, therefore, rashly 
sallied forth with about two hundred attendants, armed 
only with walking swords ; and in his way to the city, he 
cried aloud, " for the queen ! for the queen ! a plot is laid 
for my life !" The citizens flocked about him in amaze- 
ment ; but though he told them that England was sold to 
the Infanta, and exhorted them to arm instantly, no one 
showed a disposition to join him. Essex, observing the 
coldness of the citizens, and hearing that he was proclaim- 
ed a traitor by the earl of Cumberland and lord Burleigh, 
began to uespair of success, and forced his way to his own 
house ; where he appeared determined to defend himself 
to the last extremity ; but after some parley, he surren- 
dered at discretion. 

He and his friend, the earl of Southampton, were ar- 



260 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

raigned before a jury of twenty^five peers. The guilt ol 
the prisoners was too apparent to admit of any doubt 
When sentence was pronounced* Essex spoke bite a man 
who expected nothing but deatii ; but Southampton's be- 
haviour waii more mild and inoffensive, and he excited 
the compassion of all the peers. 

After Essex had passed some days in the solitude and 
reflection of a prison, his proud heart was at last subdued, 
not by the fear of death, but by the sentiments of religion, 
and he gave in to the council an account of all his crimi- 
nal designs, as well as of his correspondence with the king 
of Scots. The present situation of Essex excited all the 
tender affections of Elizabeth ; she signed the warrant for 
his execution ; she countermanded it ; she resolved on his 
death ; she felt a new return of tenderness ; but as he 
made no application to her for merd^, she finally gave het 
consent to his execution. Essex was only thirty-four 
years of age, when his rashness, imprudence, and violence, 
brought him to this untimely end. Some of his associates 
were tried, condemned, and executed ; but Southampton 
was saved with great difficulty, though he was detained in 
prison during the remainder of this reign. 

In Ireland, Mountjoy, who succeeded Essex, had ef- 
fected the defeat of Tyrone, and the expulsion of the 
Spaniards. Many of the chieftains, after concealing them-- 
selves during some time in woods and morasses, submit- 
ted to the mercy of the deputy. Tyrone himself, after an 
unsuccessful application to be received on terms, 
iro'^ surrendered unconditionally to Mountjoy, who in- 
tended to bring him a captive to England. But 
Elizabeth was now incapable of receiving any satisfaction 
from this fortunate event. Some incidents had happened 
which revived her tenderness for Essex, and filled her with 
the greatest sorrow. After his return from the fortunate 
expedition against Cadiz, she had given him a ring as a 
pledge of her affection ; and assuring him that into what- 
ever disgrace he might fall, if he sent her that ring, she 
would afford him a patient hearing, and lend a favourable 
ear to his apology. Essex, notwithstanding bll his mis- 
fortunes, had reserved this precious gift to the last extre 
mity ; but after his trial and condemnation, he resolved to 
try the experiment, and committed the ring to the countess 
of Nottingham, whom he desired to deliver it to the queen. 



ELIZABETH. 261 

The countess was prevailed on by her husband, the mortal 
enemy of Essex, not to execute the commission; and Eli- 
zabeth, ascribing the neglect to his invincible obstinacy, at 
last signed the warrant for his execution. The countess 
falling into a dangerous sickness, Avas seized with remorse 
for her conduct ; and having ootained a visit from the 
queen, she craved her pardon, and revealed to her the fa- 
tal secret. The queen burst into a furious passion ; and 
shaking the dying countess in her bed, cried out, " God 
may pardon you, but 1 never can." 

From that moment, Elizabeth resigned herself to the 
deepest and most incurable melancholy; she even refused 
food and medicine ; and throwing herself on the floor, she 
remained there ten days and as many nights, declaring 
life an insufferable burthen to her, and uttering chiefly 
groans and sighs. Her anxious mind had so long preyed 
on her frail body, that her end was visibly approaching ; 
and the council being assembled, commissioned the lord- 
keeper, admiral, and secretary, to know her majesty's 
pleasure with regard to her successor. She answered 
with a faint voice, that, " she had held a regal sceptre, 
and desired no other than a royal successor." Cecil re- 
questing her to explain herself more particularly, she sub- 
joined, that " she would have a king to succeed her, and 
who should that be, but her nearest kinsman, the king of 
Scots'?" Soon after, her voice failed, and her senses 
were lost ; and falling into a lethargic slumber, she gently 
expired, in the seventieth year of her age, and the forty- 
fifth of her reign. 

So dark was the cloud which overspread the evening of 
that day, whose meridian splendour dazzled the eyes of 
Europe. The vigour, firmness, penetration, and address 
of Elizabeth, have not been surpassed by any person that 
ever filled a throne ; but a conduct less imperious, more 
sincere, and more indulgent to her people, would have 
been requisite to form a complete character. Her heroism 
was exempt from rashness, her frugality from avarice, and 
her activity from the turbulence of ambition ; but the rival- 
ship of beauty, the desire of admiration, the jealousy of 
love, and the sallies of anger, were infirmities from which 
she guarded not herself with equal care or equal success. 
When we contemplate her as a woman, we are struck with 
the highest admiration of her great qualities and extensive 



262 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

capacity ; but we perceive a want of that softness of dis- 
position, that lenity of temper, and those amiable weak- 
nesses by which her sex is distinguished and adorned. 
Few sovereigns of England succeeded to the throne in 
more difficult circumstances ; and none ever conducted 
the government with such uniform success. Her wise 
ministers and brave warriors share the praise of her suc- 
cess ; but, instead of lessening, they increased the ap- 
plause which she justly deserves. They owed their ad- 
vancement to her judgment and discrimination. 

The maxims of her government were highly arbitrary ; 
but these were transmitted to her by her predecessors ; 
and she believed that her subjects were entitled to no 
more liberty than their ancestors had enjoyed. A well 
regulated constitutional balance was not yet established ; 
and it was not without many severe struggles, and some 
dreadful convulsions, that the people were allowed the 
blessings of liberty. 



CHAP. XHI. 

Reign of James I, 

The crown of England passed from the family of Tudor 
to that of Stuart with the utmost tranquility. In James's 
journey from Edinburgh to London, all ranks flock- 
tfi(vi ^^ around him, allured by the interest of curiosity ; 
and he was so well pleased with the flow of affec- 
tion which appeared in his new subjects, that in six weeks 
after his entrance into the kingdom, he conferred the ho- 
nour of knighthood on no fewer than two hundred and 
thirty-seven persons, besides raising several from inferior 
to higher dignities ; and among the rest, the Scottish cour- 
tiers were thought to be especially favoured. 

It must be confessed, however, that James left almost 
all the chief offices in the hands of Elizabeth's ministers, 
and intrusted the conduct of political concerns to his Eng- 
lish subjects. Among these, Cecil was successively created 
lord Effingdon, viscount Cranbourne, and earl of Salisbuiy, 
and regarded as prime minister and chief counsellor. A 
secret correspondence into which he had entered with 
James, during the latter years of Elizabeth's reign, laid 
the foundation of Cecil's credit ; and while all his former 
associates, sir Walter Raleigh, lord Gray, and lord Cob- 



JAMES I» 263 

ham, were discountenanced on account of their animosity 
against Essex, this minister was continued in his employ- 
ment, and treated with the greatest confidence and regard. 

Amidst the great tranquihty, both foreign and domestic, 
which the nation enjoyed, nothing could be more unex- 
pected than the discovery of a conspiracy to subvert the 
government, and to place on the throne Arabella Stuart, 
a near relation of tPie king's, and equally descended from 
Henry the Seventh. Sir Walter Raleigh, one of the prin- 
cipals in the plot, contraiy to all laws and equity, was 
found guilty by a jury ; but he was reprieved, not pardon- 
ed : and he remained in confinement for many years. 

The religious disputes between the church and the puri- 
tans, which had been continually increasing ever since the 
reformation, induced the king to call a conference at 
Hampton-court, on prettxice of finding expedients 
which might reconcile both parties. The disposi- ^nr^l 
lion of James, however, had received a strong bias 
against the puritanical clergy in Scotland ; and he showed 
the greatest propensity to the established church, and fre- 
quently inculcated as a maxim, no bishop, no king. 

The severe, though popular government of Elizabeth, 
had confined the rising spirit of liberty within very narrow 
bounds ; but when a nev^ and foreign family succeeded 
to the throne, and a prince less dreaded and less beloved, 
principles of a more independent nature appeared in the 
nation. The king, however, told the parliament, " that 
all their privileges were derived from his grant, and hoped 
they would not turn them against him." James, of his 
own accord, annulled all the numerous patents for monopo- 
lies ; but the exclusive companies still remained, and almost 
all the commerce of England centered in London, the trade 
of which was confined to about two hundred citizens. 

One of the most memorable events recorded in history is 
the " Gunpowder Plot." The Roman catholics had ex- 
pected great favour from James ; and they were surprised 
and enraged to find that, on all occasions, ke expressed 
his intention of strictly executing the laws against them. 
Catesby, a gentleman of a^^ ancient family, first thought 
of a most extraordinary method of revenge, which was to 
destroy, at one blow, the king, the royal family, the lords, 
and the commons, by running a mine below the hall in 
v'hich the parliament assembled, and choosing the very 



264 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

moment in which the king harangued both houses. This 
diabohcal scheme he communicated to Percy, a descendant 
of the illustrious house of Northumberland, who was 
charmed with the project ; and they agreed cautiously to 
enlist some other conspiratorSj and sent over to Flanders in 
quest of one Guy Fawkes, an officer in the Spanish service, 
with whose zeal and courage they were well acquainted. 

The conspirators bound themselves by oath of secrecy, 

which they confirmed by receiving the sacrament together; 

and they hired a house in the name of Percy, adjoining 

that in which the parliament assembled. Finding that a 

vault under the house of lords was to let, they seized the 

opportunity of renting it, and deposited in it thirty- 

^t>^^ six barrels of powder, which they covered with 

faggots and billet'wood. The doors of the cellar 

were then boldly thrown open, as if it contained nothing 

dangerous, and, confident of success, the conspirators now 

planned the remaining part of their project. 

The king, the queen, and prince Henry, were all ex- 
pected to be present at the opening of the parliament; but 
as the duke, by reason of his tender age, would necessarily 
be absent, it was resolved to assassinate him. The prin- 
cess Elizabeth, a child likewise, was kept at lord Harring* 
ton's house in Warwickshire ; and it was determined to 
seize that princess and proclaim her queen. 

Though more than twenty persons were engaged in this 
conspiracy, the dreadful secret had been sacredly kept 
nearly a year and a half. No remorse, no pity, no fear of 
punishment, or hope of reward, had induced any conspi- 
rator either to abandon the enterprise, or discover the plot. 
A few days, however, before the meeting of parliament, 
lord Monteagle, a catholic, and son to lord Morley, receiv- 
ed the following letter, from an unknown hand.* 

" My lord, out of the love I bear to some of your friends, 
I have a care of your preservation. Therefore I would 
advise you, as you tender your life, to devise some excuse 
to shift off your attendance in this parliament.. For God 

* There is strong reason to believe that this letter was sent by 
Mary, eldest daughter of lord Morley, sister to lord Monteagle, and 
wife of Thornas Abington, Esq. of Henslip, in the county of Wor- 
cester. Affection for her brother prompted the Warning, while love 
for her husband, who was privy to the conspiracy, suggested such 
means as were best calculated to prevent his detection. 




Discovery of Guy Jtawkes. 




Death of Richard III, 



JAMES L 265 

and man have concurred to punish the Wickedness of this 
tune. And think not slightly of this advertisement; but 
retire yourself into your country, where you may expect 
the event in safety. For though there be no appearance 
of any stir, yet, I say, they will receive a terrible blow this 
jiarliament, and yet they shall not see who hurts them. 
This counsel is not to be contemned, because it may do 
you good, and can do you no harm : for the danger is pastj 
as soon as you have burned the letter. And I hope God 
will give you the grace to make good use of it, unto whose 
holy protection I commend you." 

Monteagle, as well as Salisbury, to whom he com- 
municated it, considered the letter as a foolish attempt to 
frighten ; but, from the serious and earnest manner in 
which it was written, James conjectured that it implied 
something dangerous and important; and the enigmati- 
cal but strong expressions used in the epistle, seemed to 
denote some contrivance by gunpowder.* In consequence, 
it was determined to inspect all the vaults under the house 
of parliL,ment ; but the search was purposely delayed till 
the day before the meeting of parliament. This care be- 
longed to the earl of Suffolk, lord chamberlain, who re- 
marked the ^reat piles of wood and faggots in the vault 
Under the upper- :h{j9^se ; and he observed Fawkes in a 
corner, who passed hikiself as Percy's servant. About mid- 
night, sir Thomas Knevet, with proper attendants, entered 
the vault ; and after seizinjy Fawkes, he removed the fafrsfots, 
and discoverved the powder. The matches and other pre- 
parations for setting the whole on fire, were found in the 
pockets of Fawkes, who, seeing it useless to dissemble, 
boldly expressed his regret that he had lost the opportu- 
nity of firing the powder at once, and of sweetening his 
own death by that of his enemies. Before the council he 
displayed the same intrepidity, and refused to discover his 
accomplices ; but being confined in the tower, and left to 
reflect on his guilt and danger, his courage failed in a few 
days, and he made a full discovery of the conspirators, who 
never exceeded the number of eighty. They all suffered 
death by one way or other ; and horrible as the crime was, 
the bigoted catltolics regarded some of them as martyrs. 

* James might probably be led to this conclusion from recollecting 
the catastrophe of his father. Mavor. 

23 i 



266 HISTORY OP ENGLAND* 

At this time, James seems to have possessed the affec- 
tions of his English subjects and of the parHament. His 
learning, which was not despicable, obtained him the name 
of the second Solomon. All his efforts, however, for a 
union between England and Scotland proved ineffectual, 
on account of the national antipathy by which the English 
parliament was governed ; and he could procure only an 
abolition of the hostile laws which had been formerly enact- 
ed between the two kingdoms. 

The house of commons began now to feel themselves oi 
such importance, that on the motion of sir Edwin Sandys, 
they entered, for the first time, an order for the regular 
keaping of their journals. 

In the following session, the lord-treasurer, Dorset, laid 
open the king's necessities, but the commons refused to 
relieve them; and James received the mortification 
Ifilfi ^^ discovering in vain, all his wants, and of asking 
the aid of his subjects, who seemed determined to 
diminish the power of the crown. Inheriting all the high 
notions of regal government that had marked the reigns of 
Henry and Elizabeth, James was continually employed in 
endeavouring to preserve the prerogatives which former 
sovereigns had enjoyed, but which a more enlightened age 
and a less obsequious parliament deemed absolutely neces- 
sary to circumscribe. In his fii'st parliament, which sat 
nearly seven years, frequent attacks were made on the roy- 
al prerogative; and the king displayed all his exalted no- 
tions of monarchy and the authority of princes ; but the 
principles which these popular attempts developed, and 
which opposition served only to increase, at last overturn- 
ed the throne, and plunged the nation into confusion. 

In promoting the civilization of Ireland, James pro- 
ceeded on a regular and well concerted plan ; and he found 
it necessary to abolish the ancient customs, which suppliied 
the place of laws. By *Jie Erehen custom, every crime, 
iiowever enormous, was punished by a pecuniary fine. This 
rate was called eric. When the English had formed the 
design ofsending a sheriff into Fermanagh, Maguire,achief 
of that district, replied, "Your sheriff shall be welcome 
to me; but let me know beforehand his eric, or the price 
of his head, that if my people cut it off, I may levy the 
•money on the county." Small offences were subject to no 
penalty ; and in this horrible state of society, the efforts of 



JAMES I. 267 

James to produce amelioration were highly deserving of 
praise. In the room of savage institutions, he substituted 
English laws ; took the natives under his protection, and 
declared them free citizens ; and governed the kingdom by 
a regular administration, military as well as civil. 

This year, the sudden death of Henry, prince of Wales, 
in the eighteenth year of his age, diffused a general grief 
throughout the nation. Neither his high birth nor 
his youth had seduced him into any irregularities ; t^in 
business and ambition were his sole delight ; and 
his inclinations as well as exercises were martial. The 
French ambassador, taking leave of him, and asking his 
commands for France, found him employed in the exercise 
of the pike : " Tell your king," said he, " in what occupa- 
tion you left me engaged." He had conceived great affec- 
tion and esteem for sir Walter Raleigh, who was prisoner 
in the tower. " Surely," observed he, " no king but my 
father would keep such a bird in a cage." 

The marriage of the Princess Elizabeth with Frederic, 
elector palatine, served to dissipate the grief which arose 
from that melancholy event ; but this marriage, though 
happy to the nation in its remote and ultimate conse- 
quences, was unfortunate both to the king and his son-in- 
law. The elector, trusting to so great an alliance, engaged 
in enterprises beyond his strength ; and the king not being 
able to support him in his pretensions, lost entirely, to- 
wards the end of his life, the affection and esteem of his 
own subjects. 

The history of this reign is more properly a history of 
the court than of the nation. About the end of the year 
1609, Robert Carre, a youth of twenty years of age, and 
of a good family in Scotland, arrived in London, and was 
introduced to the English court. The charms of his per- 
son and the elegance of his manners soon won the affec- 
tions of James, who successively knighted him, created 
him viscount Rochester, and gave him the garter. In sir 
Thomas Overbury, this minion met with a judicious and 
sincere counsellor ; and so long as he was governed by his 
friendly counsels, he enjoyed the highest favour of his so- 
vereign, without being hated by the people. Intoxicated, 
ho^^ever, by his good fortune, Rochester found means to 
seduce the affections of Ihe youn^ countess of Essex, 
daughter of the earl of Suffolk, though she rejected the 



268 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

embraces of her husband ; and in spite of the remonstran- 
ces of Overbury, a divorce was procured, and a marriage 
solemnized between the two adulterers. On this occasion, 
the king so far forgot the dignity of his character, and his 
friendship to the family of Essex, that, lest the lady should 
lose any rank by her new marriage, he created his minion 
earl of Somerset. 

The countess, however, was not satisfied till she could 
satiate her revenge on Overbury, who had been committed 
to the tower, at the instance of Somerset, for disobeying 
an order of the king. She engaged her husband, as well 
as her uncle, the earl of Northampton, in the atrocious de- 
si o"n of destroying him secretly by poison. Fruitless at- 
tempts were reiterated by weak doses ; but at last they 
gave him one so sudden and violent, that the symptoms 
were apparent to every one who approached him ; and 
though a strong suspicion prevailed in the public, the full 
proof of the crime was not brought to light for some years 
after. 

The fatal catastrophe of sir Thomas Overbury increased 
or begat a suspicion that the prince of Wales had been 
carried off by poison, given him by Somerset ; and the 
kino- was not spared amidst the just imputations thrown 
on his favourite. 

A new parliament was again summoned, after every ex- 
pedient had been tried to relieve the king's necessities, 
even to the sale of baronetages and peerages ; but 
^* Pj that assembly, instead of entering on the business 
of supply, as urged by the king, began with dispu- 
ting his majesty's power of levying new customs and im- 
positions, by the mere authority of his prerogative. The 
king, with great indignation, dissolved the parliament, 
without obtaining the smallest supply to his necessities ; 
and he imprisoned some of the members, who had been 
most forward in their opposition to his measures ; and 
though he valued himself highly on his king-craft, he open- 
ly at his table inculcated those monarchical principles 
which he had strongly imbibed. Among other company, 
there sat at table two bishops, Neile and Andrews. The 
king publicly proposed the question, whether he might not 
take his subjects' money when he needed it, without all 
this formality of parliament 1 The obsequious Neile re- 
plied, " God forbid you should not ; for you are the breath 



JAMES I. 269 

of oui* nostrils." Andrews declined answering ; but when 
the king ur<>ed him, he pleasantly observed, " I think your 
majesty may lawililly take my _brother Neile's money, for 
he offers.*' 

The favourite had hitherto escaped the inquiry of jus- 
tice ; but conscious of the murder of his friend, he became 
sullen and silent ; and the king began to estrange himself 
from a man who no longer contributed to his amusement. 
The enemies of Somerset seized the opportunity of throw- 
ing a new minion in the king's way, in the person of 
George Villiers, a youth of one and twenty, who was im- 
mediately raised to the office of cup-bearer. In the mean 
time, Somerset's guilt in the murder of sir Thomas Over- 
bury was fully discovered ; and James, alarmed and asto- 
nished at such enormous guilt in a man whom he had so 
highly honoured, recommended a most rigorous scrutiny. 
All the accomplices received the punishment of death ; but 
the king bestowed a pardon on the principals, Somerset 
and the countess ; and after some years imprisonment, he 
restored them to their liberty, and they languished out 
their old age in infamy and obscurity. 

The fall of Somerset opened the way for Villiers, who, 
in the space of a few years, by rapid advances, was at last 
created duke of Buckingham, knight of the garter, master 
of the horse, and lord high-admiral of England, with other 
honourable appointments. His mother obtained the title 
of countess of Buckingham ; his brother was created vis- 
count Purbec ; and a numerous train of needy relations 
were all invested with credit and authority. 

Sir Walter Raleigh had been imprisoned for thirteen 
years ; and men had leisure to reflect on the hardship and 
injustice of this sentence. They pitied his active and en- 
terprising spirit, which languished in the rigours of confine- 
ment ; and they admired his extensive genius, no less than 
his unbroken magnanimity. To increase these favourable 
dispositions, on^ which he built the hopes of reco- 
vering his liberty, Raleigh spread the report of a |^J^ 
rich gold mine, which he had discovered in Guiana. 
The king gave little credit to the tale, but released him 
fromtthe tower, without pardoning him, and sutfered him 
to try the adventure. 

Raleigh had declared that the Spaniards had planted no 
colonies on that part of the coast where this mine lay ; but 
23* 



270 HISTORY OF ENGLAND* 

it had happened, that, in a space of twenty-three yeafs. 
which had elapsed since he had last visited that region, 
they had formed a settlement on the river Oronooko, and 
built a town called St. Thomas* To this place Raleig;h 
directly bent his course, and sent a detachment under the 
command of his son, and of captain Kemys, an officer en- 
tirely devoted to him. The Spaniards^ who had expected 
tjiis invasion, fired on the English at their landing-, were 
repidsed, and pursued into the town. Young Raleigh re- 
ceived a shot, of which he immediately expired ; but the 
town was carried, and afterwards reduced to ashes. Ke- 
mys, who owned that he was within two hours' march of 
the mine, returned to Raleigh \vith the melancholy news of 
his son's death; and, despairing of the success of the en- 
terprise, he retired to his cabin, and put an end to his Kfe. 

The other adventurers now concluded, that they were 
deceived by Raleigh ; and thinking it safest to return imme- 
diately to England, they carried him with them. The 
privy council pronounced that Raleigh had abused the 
king's confidence ; and the court of Spain raising loud 
complaints against him, the king made use of that power 
which he had purposely reserved in his own hands, and 
signed the warrant for the execution upon his former sen- 
tence. 

Raleig;h, finding his fate inevitable, collected all his cou- 
rage and resolution. As he felt the edge of the axe with 
which he was to be beheaded, " 'Tis a sharp remedy," he 
said, " but a sure one for all ills." His harangue to the 
people was calm and eloquent ; and, with the utmost in- 
difference, he laid his head on the block, and received the 
fatal blow. 

The execution of this sentence, which was at first hard, 
and which had been so long suspended, gave general dis- 
satisfaction ; and it was rendered still more invidious and 
vmpopular by the intimate connections entered into with 
Spain. Godemar, the Spanish ambassador, in order to 
withdraw the attention of James from Germany, had of- 
fered the second daughter of Spain in marriage to prince 
Charles, with an immense fortune. The bait took; and 
though the states of Bohemia, inspired with the love of 
civil and religious liberty, had taken up arms against the 
emperor Ferdinand, and tendered their crown to Frederic, 
elector palatine, probably on account of his connection 



JAMES f* 271 

with England, James refused to lend any assistance to his 
son-in-law, and Frederic^ being defeated in the great and 
decisive battle of Prague^ was driven from the palatinate^ 
and fled with his family into Holland. 

High were now the murmurs and complaints against the 
inactive disposition of the king, who flattered himself, that 
after he had formed an intimate connection with 
the Spanish monarchy by means of his son's mar- ipon 
riaoe, the restitution of the palatinate might be 
procured, from motives of friendship alone. 

At this time the great seal was in the hands of Franciis 
Bacon, lord Verulam, a man universally admired for the 
sublimity of his genius ; but his want of economy, and his 
indulgence to servants, involved him in necessities ; and he 
received bribes which rendered him obnoxious to censure. 
Being impeached by the commons, the peers sentenced 
him to pay a fine of forty thousand pounds, to be impri- 
soned in the tower during the king^s pleasure, and to be 
tor ever incapable of holding any ofllce, place -or employ* 
ment. Bacon, however, was soon released from prison, 
the fine was remitted, and, in consideration of his great 
merit, a pension of eighteen hundred pounds a year was 
conferred upon him ; and his literary productions have 
.Tiade his guilt or weakness be forgotten or overlooked by 
posterity. 

In the mean time, the commons entreated his majesty, 
that he would immediately undertake the defence of the 
palatinate ; that he would turn his arms against Spain ; 
and that he would enter into negotiations for a niarriao^e 
with his son only with a protestant princess. This seeming 
an invasion of his prerogative, highly incensed James, who, 
in a letter to the speaker, sharply rebuked the house for de- 
bating on matters far above their capacity, and forbade 
them to meddle with any subject that regarded his govern 
ment. This letter inflamed the commons, who, after ano- 
ther ineflcctu^ remonstrance, framed a protestation, in 
which they repeated all their claims for freedom of speech, 
and an unbounded authority to interpose with their advice 
and counsel. They asserted that the liberties, franchises, 
privileges, and jurisdictions of parliament, are the ancient 
and undoubted birthright of the subjects of England. 
This protestation the king himself tore from the journals ; 
and after committing some of the leading members of the 



272 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

house to the tower, he finally dissolved the parliament. 
These struggles, between prerogative on the one hand, 
and privilege on the other, terminated only with the over- 
throw of the monarchy, under the unfortunate Charles 
the First. 

In vain did James, by reiterated proclamations, forbid the 
discussing of state affairs. Such proclamations, as might 
naturally be expected, seized rather to injElame the curiosi- 
ty of the public. The efforts of Frederic for the 
ir-29 recovery of his dominions were vigorous, but inef- 
fectual ; and James now persuaded his son-in-law to 
disarm, and to trust to his negotiations. To show, however, 
the estimation in which James's negotiations were held 
abroad, in a farce acted at Brussels, a courier announced 
that the palatinate would soon be wrested from Austria, as 
succours from all quarters were hastening to the relief of 
the despoiled elector; the king of Denmark, he said, had 
agreed to contribute to his assistance one hundred thousand 
pickled herrings ; the Dutch, one hundred thousand butter 
boxes ; and the king of England, one hundred thousand 
ambassadors. On other occasions, James was depicted 
with a scabbard, but without a sword ; or with a sword, 
which no one could draw, though several were pulling at it. 

In order to remove all obstacles to the match between 
the infanta of Spain and prince Charles, James despatch- 
ed the earl of Bristol to Philip IV. ; all matters were ad- 
justed, and the dispensation from Rome only was wanting, 
when this flattering prospect was blasted by the temerity 
of Buckingham. 

A coolness between this favourite and the prince of 
Wales had taken place ; and Buckingham, desirous of an 
opportunity which might connect him with Charles, and 
also envious of the great credit acquired by Bristol, pro- 
posed a journey of courtship to Madrid. The young and 
ardent mind of the prince eagerly embraced the scheme ; 
and the king was prevailed on to grant hi^onsent to the 
undertaking, though not without much reluctance and ap- 
prehension of the result. 

The prince and Buckingham, with their attendants, 
passed disguised and undiscovered through France ; and 
they even ventured into a court-ball at Paris, where Charles 
saw the princess Henrietta, whom he afterwards espoused, 
and who was at that time in the bloom of youth and beauty. 



JAMES I. 273 

In eleven days after their departure from London, they 
arrived at Madrid, and surprised every one by a step so 
unusual among great princes. The Spanish monarch 
treated Charles with the utmost respect, and the most flat- 
tering attentions ; but the infanta was only shown to her 
lover in public, the established etiquette not allowing any 
farther intercourse till the arrival of a dispensation from 
Rome. The king of England, as well as the prince, be- 
came impatient ; and the latter having taken his leave, 
embarked on board an English fleet, and returned to Eng- 
land. Charles had endeared himself to the whole Spanish 
nation, by whom he was beloved ^nd esteemed ; while 
Buckingham, by his indecent freedoms and his dissolute 
pleasures, had rendered himself universally despised and 
hated. Through the intrigues of Buckingham, who 
dreaded the influence of the Spaniards in England after 
the arrival of the infanta, the match was broken off*; and 
James was induced to abandon a project which, during 
many years, had been the object of his wishes, and which 
had been brought near to a happy conclusion. 

The king, having thus involuntarily broken with Spain, 
was obliged to summon a parliament, in order to procure 
the necessary supplies ; and in that assembly, Buck- 
ingham threw all the blame on the court of Spain, \p^l 
Avhich he accused of artifice and insincerity. The 
parliament advised the king to break off* both treaties vrith 
Spain, as well that which regarded the marriage, as that 
for the restitution of the palatinate. The supply, how- 
ever, was voted with parsimony ; and to it were annexed 
conditions, w^hich trenched on the prerogative, but which 
at last produced legitimate liberty. 

After the rupture with Spain, a treaty of marriage be- 
tween the prince of Wales and Henrietta of France was 
speedily concluded ; but military enterprises were ex- 
tremely disagreeable to James, whose disposition 
incapacitated #im for war. The English nation, ^'n^^ 
however, were bent on the recovery of the palati- 
nate ; and an army of twelve thousand foot and two hun- 
dred horse, under the command of count Mansfeldt, were 
embarked at Dover; but so ill had the expedition been 
concerted, that half of the troop«r> died on board by a pesti- 
iHDtial disorder, before they wero permitted to land, and 



274 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

the other half, weakened by sickness, appeared insufficient 
to march into the palatinate. 

James, who had zealously cultivated the arts of peace, 
did not long survive the commencement of hostilities. He 
was seized with a tertian ague, and finding himself gradu- 
ally becoming weaker, he sent for the prince, whom he ex- 
horted to bear a tender regard for his wife, but to preserve 
a constancy in religion, to protect the church of England, 
and to extend his care to the unhappy family of the pala • 
tine. With decency and fortitude he prepared himself for 
his end ; and he died in the fifty-ninth year of his age, aftei 
a reign over England of twenty-two years and some days. 

In the annals of nations, it would be difficult to find a 
reign less illustrious, yet more unspotted and unblemished, 
than that of James. No prince so little enterprising and 
so inoftensive, was ever so much exposed to the opposite 
extremes of calumny and praise ; and his character has 
been much disputed even in the present time. It must be 
owned, however, that he possessed many virtues, though 
scarcely one of them was free from the contagion of the 
neighbouring vice. His generosity bordered on profusion, 
his learning on pedantry, his pacific disposition on pusi> 
lanimity, and his wisdom on cunning. While he imagined 
that he was only maintaining his own authority, he may 
perhaps be suspected of having somewhat encroached on 
the liberties of the people. His intentions were just, but 
more adapted to the conduct of private life, than to the 
government of kingdoms. 

He was married to Anne of Denmark, who died in 1619, 
eminent neither for her vices nor her virtues ; and he left 
only one son, Charles, then in the twenty-fifth year of his 
age ; and one daughter, Elizabeth, married to the elector 
palatine. 

At this period, high pride of family prevailed ; and great 
riches acquired by commerce, were rare. Civil honours, 
which now hold the first place, were then^ubordinate to 
the military ; and the young gentry and nobility were fond 
of distinguishing themselves by arms. The country life, 
which still prevails in England to a certain degree, was 
just beginning to give way to a fondness for the seduce- 
ments of the city ; and James discouraged as much as pos- 
sible this alteration of manners. " He was wont to be 
very earnest," lord Bacon tells us, " with the country gen- 



CHARLES r. 275 

tlemen to go from London to their country seats ; and 
sometimes he would say to them, Gentlemen, at London 
you are like ships in a sea, which show like nothing ; but 
in your country villages, you are like ships in a river, which 
look like great things." 

The amount of the king's revenue in this reign was 
about four hundred and fifty thousand pounds ; and his 
ordinary disbursements are said to have exceeded this sum 
thirty-six thousand pounds* 



CHAP. XIV. 

The reign of Charles t. 
No sooner had Charles assumed the reins of go- 
vernment, than he issued writs for summoning a ipo^ 
new parliament, which, after the arrival of the prin- 
cess Henrietta, whom he had espoused by proxy, assem- 
bled at Westminster. The young prince addressed them 
in the language of simplicity and cordiality ; but the com- 
mons, though aware of the expenses of government, and 
that the war was undertaken in compliance with their 
earnest entreaties, granted a supply of one hundred and 
twelve thousand pounds only. The puritanical party were 
disgusted with the court, on account of the restraints un- 
der which they were held, and of the favour suspected to 
be granted to the catholics by the treaty of marriage. To 
the moderate supplies allowed by parliament, were tacked 
concessions in favour of civil liberty ; and Charles, who 
had imbibed high ideas of monarchical power, and of the 
prerogative of the crown, could ill brook any encroach- 
ments on his authority, or any want of attention to his rea- 
sonable demands. 

Though he condescended to employ entreaties with the 
parliament, in order to obtain the necessary aid, the com- 
mons remained inexorable ; and a new discovery inflamed 
them against |j|e court and the duke of Buckingham. 
When James courted the alliance with France, he had 
promised to furnish Lewis with eight ships, which were to 
be employed against the Genoese, the allies of Spain ; but 
when the vessels by the orders of Charles arrived at 
Dieppe, a strong suspicion arose that they were intended 
to serve against the Hugonots of Rochelle. The sailors 
were inflamed; and Pennington, their commander, de- 



276 tttStORY OP ENiGLAND. 

clared, that he would rather be hanged in England for dis- 
obedience, than fight against bis brother protestants in 
France. The whole squadron sailed immediately to the 
Downs, where they received new orders from Bucking- 
ham, lord admiral, to return to Dieppe ; and a report was 
industriously spread, that a peace had been concluded be- 
tween the French king and the Hugonots. When they 
arrived at Dieppe, they found themselves deceived, and 
again returned to England, notwithstanding the magnifi- 
cent offers of the French* 

On this occasion, the commons renewed their complaints 
against the growth of popery ; and Charles gave a gra- 
cious and compliant answer to their remonstrances; but 
when he found that the parliament was resolved to grant 
him no supply, he used the pretence of the plague to dis- 
solve the assembly* 

To supply the want of parliamentary aids, Charles had 
recourse to the unconstitutional and unpopular expedient 
of issuing privy^seals, for borrowing money of his subjects ; 
and, by means of the money thus procured, he equipped a 
fleet of eighty vessels, carrying ten thousand men, which 
sailed to Cadiz under sir Edward Cecil, lately created vis* 
count WimbletoUi. The bay was full of Spanish ships of 
great value ; but owing to some neglect or misconduct, 
and the plague breaking out among the seamen and sol- 
diers, the fleet was obliged to return to England without 
effecting any thing. 

Charles having failed in this enterprise, was again obli- 
ged to have recourse to a parliament ; and though 
1 fi^fi ^^ ^^^ nominated four popular leaders, to be sheriffs 
of their respective counties, and by that means had 
incapacitated them fl'om being elected members, the fer- 
ment of opposition still continued. The commons, indeed^ 
voted a supply ; but the passing of that vote into a law 
Was reserved till the end of the session ; and they annex- 
ed a condition, that they should be alloweiHo regulate and 
control every part of the government which displeased 
them. Great dissatisfaction was expressed by Charles at 
this treatment ; but his urgent necessities obliged him to 
submit* 

The duke of Buckingham, formerly obnoxious to the 
public, became every day more unpopular ; and the house 
of commons impeached him of various crimes and misde- 



CHARtflS t. 27t 

meanoiirs. While the commons were thus engaged, the 
lord-keeper, in the king's name, expressly commanded the 
house not to meddle with Buckingham ; and Charles 
threatened them, that if they did not furnish him with sup- 
plies, he should be obliged to try new counsels. Two mem* 
bers, who had been employed as managers of the impeach* 
ment, were thrown into prison. The commons im- 
mediately declared, that they would proceed no farther 
upon business till they had satisfaction in their privileges* 
Charles was obliged to release the imprisoned members ; 
and this attempt served only to exasperate the house still 
more* The commons were preparing a remonstrance 
against the levying of tonnage and poundage without con- 
sent of parliament, when the king, v/ith intemperate haste, 
ended the session ; and they parted in mutual ill humour* 

The new counsels, with which Charles had menaced 
the parliament, were now adopted : a commission was 
openly granted to compound with the catholics, and agree 
for dispensing with the penal laws enacted against them ; 
from the nobility, assistance was requested, and from the 
city, a loan required ; and the maritime towns, with the 
aid of the adjacent counties^ were compelled to equip a 
certain number of ships* This is the first appearance in 
Charles* reign of ship-money, a mode of taxation which 
afterwards produced such violent discontents. 

Though these irregular and unequal expedients would 
have given disgust in more tranquil times, yet Charles pro- 
ceeded in these invidious methods with some degree of mo* 
deration, till at last, under the name of a general loan, he 
levied a sum equal to four subsidies. Many, however, re- 
fused these loans ; and some were even active in encoura- 
ging others to insist on their common rights and privile- 
ges. Several were thrown into prison by warrant of the 
council. Of these, sir Thomas Darnel, sir John Corbet, 
sir Walter Earl, sir John Hevingham, and sir Edmund 
Hampden, had spirit enough, at their own hazard and 
expense, to defend the public liberties, and to demand re- 
leasement, not as a favour from the court, but as a matter 
of right. 

The question was brought to a solemn trial before thtj 
court of Kinsr's Bench ; but though sir Randolph Crew, 
chief justice, had been displaced as unfit for the purposes 
of the court, and sir Nicholas Hyde, esteemed more obse 
34 



278 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

quious, had obtained that high office, yet the judges went 
no farther than to remand the gentlemen to prison, and to 
refuse the bail which was oftered. The nation, indeed, 
was already exasperated to a very high degree, by a variety 
of real grievances ; and except a few courtiers and eccle- 
siastics, all men were dissatisfied with the measures of go- 
vernment, and thought that if some remedy were not 
speedily adopted, all hopes of preserving the freedom of 
the constitution might be abandoned. 

Great, however, ^vas the surprise, when Charles, though 
baflfled in every attempt against Austria, embroiled with 
his own subjects, and unsupplied with any treasure except 
what he extorted by the most invidious and most danger- 
ous measures, wantonly attacked France, the other great 
kingdom in his neighbourhood. This rash action is as- 
cribed to the counsels of Buckingham. 

When Charles married by proxy the princess Henrietta, 
this minister and minion had been sent to France, to grace 
the nuptials, and conduct the new queen into England. The 
beauty of his person, the elegance of his manners, and the 
splendour of his equipage, occasioned general admiration. 
Encouraged by the smiles of the court, he carried his ad- 
dresses to the queen of Lewis ; and, after his departure, 
he secretly returned, and visiting the queen, was dismissed 
with a reproof which savoured more of kindness than of 
anger. The vigilance of Richelieu soon discovered this 
correspondence ; and when the duke was making prepa- 
rations for a new embassy to Paris, a message was sent 
him, that his presence would not be agreeable. In a ro- 
mantic fit of passion, he swore, " that he would see the 
queen in spite of all the power of France ;" and from that 
moment, he determined to engage England in a war with 
that kingdom. 

He first took advantage of some quarrels excited by the 
queen of England's attendants ; and he persuaded Charles 
to dismiss all her French servants, contrary to the article? 
of the marriage treaty. He encouraged the English ships 
of war and privateers to seize vessels belonging to French 
merchants, and these he forthwith condemned as prizes, 
by a sentence of the court of admiralty ; but finding that 
these injuries produced only remonstrances, or at most 
reprisals, on the part of France, he resolved to second the 



CHARLES 1. 279 

iatrigues of the duke of Soubize, and to undertake a mili- 
tary expedition against that kingdom. 

Soubize, and his brother, the duke of Rohan, were the 
leaders of the Hugonot faction, and strongly solicited the 
assistance of Charles. Accordingly, a fleet of one hundred 
sail, and an army of seven thousand men, were entrusted 
to the command of Buckingham ; but when the fleet ap- 
peared before Rochelle, the inhabitants of that city refused 
to admit allies of whose arrival they had received no pre- 
vious information, and Buckingham sailed to the isle of 
Rhe, where he landed his men. He finally returned to 
England with the loss of two thirds of his land forces, and 
with no other credit than the vulgar one of courage and 
personal bravery. 

Great discontents, as might be expected, prevailed 
among the English people. Their liberties were menaced ; 
illegal taxes extorted ; their commerce, which had been 
already injured, was totally annihilated by the French war ; 
the military reputation of the nation had been tarnished by 
two unsuccessful and ill conducted expeditions ; and all 
these calamities were ascribed to the obstinacy of Charles, 
in adhering to the counsels of Buckingham, whose ser- 
vices and abilities by no means deserved such unlimited 
confidence. 

In this situation of men's minds, the king and the duke 
dreaded the assembling of a parliament ; but the 
money levied, or rather extorted, under colour of iJ>oq 
prerogative, had been very slowly procured, and 
had occasioned much ill humour in the nation ; and as it 
appeared dangerous to renew the experiment, and a supply 
was absolutely necessary, it was resolved to call a parlia- 
ment. When the commons assembled, it was soon found 
that they were men of the same independent spirit with 
their predecessors, and that the resentment for past inju- 
ries was neither weakened nor forgotten. The court party 
did not pretend to defend the late measures in order to 
procure money, except on the ground of necessity, to 
which the king had been reduced by the conduct of the 
two former parliaments ; and a vote was passed, without 
opposition, against arbitrary imprisonments and forced 
loans. In return for this concession, a supply of five sub- 
fiidies was voted, with which the king declared himself 



280 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

satisfied ; and even tears of affection started in his eye, 
when he was informed of this Hberahty. 

But the supply, though voted, was not immediately 
passed into a law ; and the commons resolved to employ 
the interval in providing some barriers to their rights and 
liberties, so lately violated. They enumerated all the en- 
croachments that had been made on their constitutional 
liberties, under the name of a " petition of right ;" and 
against these grievances an eternal remedy was to be pro- 
vided. The terms in which this petition was expressed, 
seem to have been just and reasonable, yet favourable to 
public freedom ; but Charles, though he had given his 
consent to any law for securing the rights and liberties of 
the people, had not expected such inroads on the preroga- 
tive, in regard to which he was a great stickler ; and it 
was not without much difficulty, and many evasions, that 
the royal assent was obtained to a measure which diffused 
a general joy through the nation. 

Nothing tended more to excuse, if not justify, the ex- 
treme rigour of the commons towards Charles, than his 
open encouragement and avowal of principles incompati- 
ble with a limited government. One doctor Main waring 
had preached and printed a sermon subversive of all civil 
liberty ; and the commons impeached him for the doctrines 
it contained. Mainwaring was sentenced by the peers to 
be imprisoned during the pleasure of the house, to be fined 
a thousand pounds, to be suspended for three years, and 
to be rendered incapable of holding any ecclesiastical dig- 
nity or secular office. However, no sooner was the ses- 
sion ended, than Mainwaring was pardoned, and promoted 
to a living of considerable value, and, some years after, 
raised to the see of St. Asaph. This action sufficiently 
showed the insincerity of Charles in his late concessions. 

If, however, the king had been perfectly sincere in 
sanctioning the petition of right, it was evident that the 
commons would still have been dissatisfied. They con- 
tinued to carry their scrutiny into every part of govern- 
ment ; and they expressly declared, that the levying of 
tonnage and poundage without consent of parliament, 
was a palpable violation of the ancient liberties of the peo^ 
pie, and an open infringement of the petition of right. lu 
order to prevent the presenting of this remonstrance, the 



CHARLES I. 281 

king came suddenly to the parliament, and ended the ses- 
sion by a prorogation. 

Freed from the vexation of this assembly, Charles began 
to look towards foreign wars. A considerable fleet and 
army had been prepared for the relief of Rochelle, and 
Buckingham had gone to Portsmouth, to hasten the sail- 
ing of the armament. Whilst at that place, one Felton, 
of an ardent and melancholy mind, who had served under 
the duke, and had retired in discontent from the army, 
inflamed with private resentment, and taught by a remon- 
strance of the commons to consider Buckingham as the 
cause of every national grievance, fancied that he should 
do heaven acceptable service, by despatching this foe to 
religion and to his country. Accordingly, as the duke, in 
a narrow passage, was engaged in conversation with colo- 
nel sir Thomas Fyar, he was on a sudden, over sir Tho- 
mas's shoulder, struck on the breast with a knife, which 
he pulled out, saying, " the villain has killed me," and 
with these words breathed his last. 

No one had seen the blow, nor the person who inflicted 
it ; but near the door was found a hat, in which were four 
or five lines of the remonstrance of the commons, declaring 
Buckingham an enemy to the kingdom ; and it was readily 
concluded that this hat belonged to the assassin. In this 
confusion, a person without a hat was seen walking very 
composedly before the door ; and one crying out, " here is 
the fellow who killed the duke," every body ran to ask, 
" which is heV on which Felton answered, " I am he." 
When questioned at whose instigation he had committed 
the horrid deed, he replied, that no man living had credit 
enough with him, to have disposed him to such an action, 
and that believing he should perish in the attempt, his 
motives would appear in his hat. 

Charles received the melancholy news of the death of 
his favourite with an unmoved countenance ; but he re- 
tained during his whole life an affection for Buckingham's 
friends, and a prejudice against his enemies. Meanwhile, 
the distress of Rochelle had raised to the utmost extre- 
mity ; and the English being unable to relieve the place, 
the inhabitants, pressed by famine, were obliged to sur- 
render at discretion. 

Though for more than a century the duties of tonnage 
24* 



282 ttlSTORl OP ENGLAND. 

and poundage had been considered as the king's 
tccKj due, without the sanction of parhament, and had 

been so levied, yet Charles, now freed from the 
violent counsels of Buckingham, in the opening of this ses-* 
sion, informed the commons, that he had not taken these 
duties as appertaining to his hereditary prerogative, but as 
a gift of his people, and that he had levied tonnage and 
poundage out of necessity, and not by any right he as- 
sumed* This concession gave a temporary satisfaction ; 
but the commons could not be pleased; and as soon as they 
had obtained one point, they immediately found another 
to contend for. Matters of religion now formed the only 
grievance to which, in their opinion, they had not applied 
a sufficient remedy by their petition of right. The pre- 
sent liouse of commons, like all the preceding, in the pre- 
sent and two former reigns, was governed by the puritani 
cal party ; and they thought that they could not better 
serve their cause, than by stigmatizing and punishing the 
followers of Armenius, some of whom, by the indulgence 
of James and Charles, had attained the highest prefer* 
ments in the hierarchy. Laud, Neile, Montague, and 
other bishops, who were the chief supporters of episco- 
pacy, were also supposed to be tainted with arminianism. 
These men were regarded by the puritans as objects of 
enmity and distrust, as well on account of their political 
as their religious principles ; but they were protected by 
Charles, who wisely considered, that the most solid basis 
of his authority consisted in the support which he received 
from the hierarchy. 

Sir John Elliott framed a remonstrance against levying 
tonnage and poundage without consent of parliament ; 
but when the question was called for, sir John Finch, the 
speaker, said, " that he had a command from the king to 
adjourn," and immediately rose and left the chair. Tho 
whole house was in an uproar ; and the speaker was push- 
ed back into the chair, and forcibly held in it by Hollis 
and Valentine, till a short remonstrance was framed, and 
passed by acclamation. By it, papists and arminians were 
declared capital enemies to the commonwealth ; and those 
who levied, and even those who paid tonnage and pound- 
age, were branded with the same epithet. By the king's* 
order, the mace was taken from the table, and thus ended 
their proceedings ; and a few days after, the pariiami'-nt 



CHARLES I. 283 

was dissolved. Sir Miles Hobart, sir Peter Hayman, 
Seldon, Coriton, Long, and Strode, were committed to 
prison, on account of the last tumult in the house, which 
was called sedition ; and it was with great difficulty, and 
after several delays, that they obtained their release. Sir 
John Elliot, HoUis, and Valentine, were condemned by 
the court of King*s Bench, for their seditious speeches 
and behaviour in parliament, to be imprisoned during the 
king's pleasure, and to pay heavy fines. These gloried 
in their sufferings, and would not condescend to petition 
the king, and express their sorrow, though promised liberty 
on that condition ; and Elliot, happening to die while in 
custody, was regarded as a martyr to the liberties of Eng- 
land. 

Charles, destitute of all regular supply, was reduced to 
the necessity of concluding a peace with France and Spain. 
No conditions were made in favour of the palatine, 
except that Spain promised in general to use its ij^on 
good offices for his restoration. The influence of 
these two wars on domestic affkirs, and on the dispositions 
of the king and people, was of the utmost consequence ; 
but they caused no alteration in the foreign interests of 
the kingdom, which were at this time in the most prospe- 
rous condition. 

After the death of Buckingham, the queen may be con- 
sidered as the chief friend and favourite of Charles. By 
her sense and spirit, as well as by her beauty, she justified 
the partiality of her husband; but her religion, to which 
she was much attached, increased the jealousy which pre- 
vailed against the catholics and the court. 

Charles had endeavoured to gain the popular leaders, 
by conferring offices upon them ; but the views of the 
king were so repugnant to those of the puritans, that the 
leaders whom he gained, lost from that moment all influ- 
ence with their party. This was the case with sir Thomas 
Wentworth, whom the king had afterwards created earl of 
Straffbrd, made president of the council of York, and 
deputy of Ireland, and who was regarded as his chief mi- 
nister and counsellor. By his eminent talents and abili- 
ties, Straffbrd merited all the confidence which his master 
reposed in him ; but as he now employed all his counsels 
to support the prerogative, which he had formerly endea- 
voured to diminish, he was detested by the ipuritans. In 



.■ -.^^-i- 



284 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

all ecclesiastical affairs, Laud, bishop of London, had the 
greatest influence over the king. He was a man of virtue 
and talents ; but he wanted pinidence, and a flexibility of 
character, to open a way through difliculties and opposi- 
tions. His whole study w^as to exalt the dignity of the 
priesthood ; but he weakly imagined, that this would be 
best efiected by the introduction of new ceremonies and 
observances, and a strict regard to the external forms of 
religion ; and the discontented puritans affected to consi- 
der the church of England as relapsing fast into Romish 
superstition. Certain, however, it is, that Laud magnified, 
on every occasion, the regal authority, and treated with 
disdain all pretensions to a free constitution. 

Charles issued a proclamation, declaring, that " though 
his majesty has shown, by frequent meetings with his peo- 
ple, his love to the use of parliaments ; yet the late abuse 
having, for the present, driven him unwillingly out of that 
course, he will account it presumption for any one to pre- 
scribe to him any time for the calling of that assembly. '^* 
This was generally considered as a declaration, that 
Charles did not intend to summon any more parliaments ; 
and every measure of the king*s tended to confirm this 
suspicion, so disagreeable to the people. 

Tonnage and poundage continued to be levied by the 
royal authority alone ; and the king had recourse to va- 
rious unconstitutional expedients of raising money by vir- 
tue of his prerogative, in every possible way, contrary not 
only to the rights of the people, but in many instances 
also in direct opposition to their general feelings and pre- 
judices. The severities of the star-chamber and high 
commission court were revived, with all their force and 
malignity ; and being exercised against those who were 
the champions of freedom, and who triumph*?d in their 
sufferings, the government became still more odious. 
Frynne, a barrister, having written a book, intituled His- 
trio-Mastyx, in which he censured not only stage-plays, 
music and dancing, but also hunting, public festivals, 
christmas-keeping, bonfires, and May-poles, was indicted 
in the star-chamber as a libeller, merely because the king 
and queen frequented the theatres, and the queen some- 
times acted a part in pastorals and interludes represented 
at court. The star-chamber sentenced him to lose both 
his ears, to "^tand in the pillory, to pay a fine" of five thou- 



CHARLES I. 285 

sand pounds, and to be imprisoned during life. This man 
was a champion among the puritans ; and it was probably 
with a view of mortifying that sect, that he was condemn- 
ed to such a severe and ignominious punishment. 

Charles made a journey to Scotland, attended by the 
court, in order to hold a parliament there, and to 
pass through the ceremony of his coronation. Af- , ^oo 
ter his return, on the death of archbishop Abbot, 
he conferred the see of Canterbury on Laud, and that of 
London on Juxton, a person of great integrity, mildness, 
and humanity. 

Ship-money was now levied by virtue of the preroga- 
tive ; and though the amount of the whole tax little ex- 
ceeded two hundred thousand pounds, and was 
equally assessed, and entirely expended on the ipoj^ 
navy, yet as it was wholly arbitrary, the discontents 
it excited, and the irregular means by which it was en- 
forced, produced the most important consequences. The 
good effects of a navy, however, were soon apparent. A 
fleet of sixty sail attacked the herring fisheries of the Dutch, 
who consented to pay thirty thousand pounds for a license 
for one year ; and a squadron was sent against Saliee, 
and destroyed that receptacle of pirates, by whom the 
English commerce, and even the English coasts, had been 
long infested. 

Burton, a divine, and Bastwick, a physician, were tried 
in the star-chamber for seditious and schismatical libels, 
and condemned to the same punishment as Prynne. The 
rigours of the staF-chamber, which had increased in seve- 
rity since the promotion of Laud, induced the leaders of 
the puritans to endeavour to ship themselves off for Ame- 
rica, where others of their sect had laid the foundation of 
a free government ; but the council, dreading the conse- 
quences of a disaffected colony, a proclamation was issued 
to prevent their sailing; and thus sir Arthur Haselrig, 
John Hampden, John Pym, and Oliver Cromwell, were 
detained in England, "after having embarked on board of 
vessels in the river Thames, for the purpose of abandon- 
ing their native country for ever. 

It would be impossible, in this short work, to enter into 
a detail of the various means employed for abridging or 
destroying the few remaining liberties of the people. It 
may be sufficient to observe, that the unconstitutional acts 



286 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

of Charles, and the oppression which was universally felt, 
produced murmurs and complaints, and at length re- 
sistance. 

John Hampden, who had been detained in England 
against his will, has deserved well of his country for the 
bold stand which he made in defence of its laws and liber- 
ties. Rather tlian tamely submit to so illegal an imposi- 
tion as the levying of ship money, he resolved to abide the 
event of a legal prosecution, though the sum in which he 
was rated did not exceed twenty shillings. The case was 
argued during twelve days, in the exchequer-chamber, be- 
fore all the judges of England ; and the attention of the 
nation was strongly excited to every circumstance of this 
celebrated trial. The event was easily foreseen ; the pre- 
judiced judges, with the exception of four of them, gave 
sentence in favour of the crown. Hampden, however, 
obtained by the trial the end for which he had generously 
sacrificed his safety and his quiet ; the people were roused 
from their lethargy, and became fully sensible of the dan- 
ger to which their liberties were exposed. 

In this state of discontent and despondency, Charles at- 
tempted to introduce episcopacy into Scotland : and by 
this attempt, he alienated the affections of his Scottish 
subjects, and threw both kingdoms into a flame. Against 
the combination of the Scots, who were contending for 

what they considered as dearer to them than life, 
^'nnQ the king had nothing to oppose but a proclamation. 

This was instantly encountered by a public protes- 
tation ; and the insurrection which ha9 been advancing 
by a gradual and slow progress, now blazed up at once. 
No disorder, however, attended it. On the contrary, a 
new order immediately took place. Four tables, as they 
were called, were formed in Edinburgh. One consisted 
of nobility, another of gentry, a third of ministers, and a 
fourth of burgesses. In the hands of the four tables the 
whole authority of the kingdom was placed ; and among 
the first acts of their government was the production of 

the COVENANT. 

This covenant consisted, first, of a renunciation of po- 
pery, formerly signed by James in his youth ; and this was 
followed by a bond of union, by which the subscribers 
obliged themselves to resist rehgious innovations, and to 
defend each other against all opposition whatever. Peo- 



CHARLES I. 287 

f)le of every rank and condition hastened to sign this cove- 
nant ; and so general was the contagion, that it seized the 
very ministers and counsellors of the king. 

Charles was now willing entirely to abolish the canons, 
the liturgy, and the high commission court ; and he gave 
authority to summon first an assembly, then a parliament, 
where eveiy national grievance should be redressed ; but 
he wished on any terms to retain episcopacy in the church 
of Scotland, The covenanters saw that it would be ne- 
cessary to retain their religious tenets by military force ; 
and the Dutch and French, who sought occasion for re- 
venge, on account of a former misunderstanding, secretly 
fomented the commotions in Scotland, and supplied the 
covenanters with money and arms. The principal re- 
source, however, of the Scottish malcontents, was in their 
own vigour and abilifies. The earl of Argyle became the 
chief leader of the party ; and Leslie, a soldier of expe- 
rience and merit, was intrusted with the command of 
their forces. 

Notwithstanding Charles's aversion to sanguinary mea- 
sures, his attachment to the hierarchy prevailed ; and he 
equipped a fleet, and levied a considerable army, which he 
joined himself at Berwick. Dreading, however, the con- 
sequences of a defeat, he suddenly concluded a peace, by 
which it was stipulated, that he should withdraw his fleet 
and array, that the Scots should dismiss their forces, that 
the king's authority should be acknowledged, and that » 
general assembly and parliament should be immediately 
convoked, in ord#r to compose all differences. 

When the assembly met, they voted episcopacy to be 
unla\^'ful in the church of Scotland : Charles was only 
willing to allow it to be contrary to the constitutions of the 
church. They stigmatized the liturgy and canons as po- 
pish : he agreed simply to abolish them. They denom' - 
nated the high commission tyranny : he was content to set 
it aside. The parliament, which sat after the assembly, 
advanced pretensions which tended to diminish the civil 
power of the monarch ; and they were proceeding to ratify 
the acts of the assembly, when they were prorogued by 
the order of Charles. And on account of these claims, 
which might have been foreseen, the war was renewed 
with great advantage on the side of the covenanters, and 
disadvantages on that of the king. 



288 UlSTOiiY OP ENGLA]&f£». 

The covenanters, when they dismissed their troops, had 
cautiously warned them to be ready at a moment's notice ; 
and the rehgious zeal with which they were inspi- 
ifilfi I'^d, made them fly to their standards as soon as 
surafeioned ; but th-e king, with great difficulty, 
drew together an army, which he soon discovered that he 
was unable to support. Charles, therefore^ found himself 
under the necessity of calling a parliament, after an inter- 
mission of eleven years ; but after the king had tried many 
irregular methods of taxation, and after multiplied disgust? 
given to the puritans, who sympathized with their discon- 
tented brethren in Scotland ; above all, when he consider^ 
ed the spirit with which former parliaments had been ac- 
tuated, he could feel little confidence in a measure which 
his necessities had obliged him to adopt* Instead of sup* 
plies, he was assailed with murmurs and complaints. 
Charles, finding that ship money, in particular, gave great 
alarm and disgust, declared that he never intended to make 
a constant revenue of it, and that all the money levied had 
been faithfully applied ; and he offered a total renuncia- 
tion of that obnoxious claim, by any law which the com- 
mons might think proper to frame. In return, he only 
asked a supply of twelve subsidies, about six hundred 
thousand pounds, and that payable in three years. 

To the partisans o^ the court, who urged a reasonable 
confidence in the king, and a supply of his present wants, 
the popular leaders replied, that it was the ancient prac- 
tice of parliament to give grievances the precedency of 
supply ; and that by bargaining for th5 remission of an 
unconstitutional duty, they would in a manner ratify the 
authority by which it had been levied. These reasons, 
joined to so many causes of ill-humour, produced their 
effect on the majority ; and some affirmed, that the amount 
of twelves subsidies was a gi'eater sum than could be found 
in all England. Such were the happy ignorance and in- 
experience of those times, in regard to taxation ! 

The king, seeing that the same principles still prevailed, 
which had occasioned him so mujch disturbance in the for- 
mer parliaments, and being informed that a vote was about 
to pass, which would blast his revenue of ship-money, with- 
out allowinff him any compensation in return, formed the 
Uasty resolution of dissolving the assembly, a measure of 




Elizabeth, 



James I. 




, Charles I. 



wider 




Charles II. 



James 11. 



CHARl ES I. 289 

which he soon after heartily repented, and for which he 
was severely blamed. 

Charles, disappointed of parliamentary subsidies, was 
obliged to have recourse again to his usual expedients ; 
and new exactions and acts of assumed authority served 
only to increase the general discontent. With some diffi- 
culty he collected sufficient means for marching his army, 
consisting of nineteen thousand foot, and two thousand 
horse, under the earls of NorthunLberland and Strafford, 
and lord Conway. The Scottish army, which was some- 
what superior, had already entered England, as they pre- 
tended, with no other view than to obtain access to the 
king's presence, and to lay their humble petition at his 
feet. At Newburn upon Tyne, a detachment under Con- 
way seemed to dispute the passage of that river. The 
Scots first entreated them not to stop them in their march 
to their gracious sovereign ; and then attacked them with 
great bravery, killed several, and chased the remainder 
from their ground. Such a panic then seized the whole 
English army, that the forces at Newcastle fled immedi- 
ately to Durham, and afterwards into Yorkshire. 

The Scots took possession of Newcastle ; and, in order 
to prevent their advancing upon him, the king agreed to 
a treaty, and named sixteen English noblemen, who were 
all popular men, to meet eleven Scottish commissioners 
at Rippon. 

An address arrived from the city of London, petitioning 
for a parliament ; and Charles, in despair of being able to 
stem the torrent, at last determined to yield to it, and de- 
clared that it was his wish to meet the representatives of 
his people. As many difficulties occurred in the negotia- 
tions with the Scots, it was proposed, likewise, to transfer 
the treaty from Rippon to London, a proposal willingly 
embraced by the commissioners of that nation, who were 
sure of treating with advantage, in a place where the king 
would have more enemies and they more friends. 

The causes of disgust which, for more than thirty years, 
had been multiplying in England, were now arrived at full 
maturity. No sooner had the house of commons 
assembled, than they impeached Strafford, who tl»4rt 
had incurred the resentment of the three kingdoms, 
by different services rendered to his unpopular master. 
Pym enumerated all the grievances under which the na- 
2S 



290 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

tion laboured ; and after several hours spent in invective 
or debate, the impeacnment of Strafford was voted ; and 
Pym vras chosen to carry it up to the lords. Strafford, 
who had just entered the house of peers, was immediately 
ordered into custody, with symptoms of violent prejudice 
in his judges as well as in his prosecutors. 

An impeachment of high treason was also voted against 
Laud, who was committed to custody ; and the lord-keeper 
Finch, and secretary Windebank, were charged with the 
same crime; but these ministers, conscious of their dan- • 
ger, escaped to the continent. In short, all the officers 
and servants of the crown, who had been guilty of any 
obnoxious or oppressive measure, were called upon to an- 
swer for their conduct ; and even the judges, who had 
given their vote against Hampden, in the tiial of ship 
money, were accused before the peers, and obliged to find 
security for their appearance. 

Thus, in a short time, the whole sovereign power was 
transferred to the commons ; and this was the time when 
genius and talents, freed from the restraint of authority, 
began to display themselves. Pym, Hampden, Si. John, 
Hollis, and Vane, greatly distinguished themselves by their 
various endowments ; and even men of more moderate 
talents, and of different principles, caught a portion of the 
same spirit from tlie situation in which they were placed. 

The harangues of members, now first pubhshed, kept 
alive the discontents against the king's admiiii^^tration ; 
and the sentence against Prynne, Bastwick, and Burton, 
being reversed by parliament, these writers were a^ain tui-n- 
ed loose upon the public, and increased the generai fxsrment. 

From necessity, the king remained entirely pasbive du- 
ring these violent proceedings. *' You have taken the whole 
machine of government to pieces," said Charles, in a 
speech to parliament ; " a practice frequent wich skiifui 
artists, when they desire to clean the wheels from sny rwat 
which may have grown upon them." " The engine, ' con- 
tinued he, " may again be restored to its former 'tse and 
motions, provided it be put up entire, so as not a ftn of it 
be wanting." But this was far from the intentioriol the 
commons, who, like all violent reformers, destroyed the 
whole machine, instead of removing only such p.arts as 
might justly be deemed superfluous and injurious. 

The commons, besides overawing their opponents, 



CHARLES L. 291 

thought it n-ecessary to encourage their friends and adhe- 
rents ; and, with this view, they voted the Scots a subsis- 
tence of eight hundred and fifty pounds a day, and St. 
Antiioline's church was assigned them for their devotions, 
where their chaplains began to practise the presbyterian 
form of worship, to which multitudes of all ranks resorted. 
The most effectual expedient for procuring the favour of 
the zealous Scots, was the promotion of the presbyterian 
discipline and worship throughout England ; and to this in- 
, novation the popular leaders among the commons, as well 
as their more devoted partisans, were sufficiently inclined. 

Petitions against the church were framed in different 
parts of the kingdom ; and a bill was introduced, prohibit- 
ing the clergy from holding any civil office, and of course 
depriving the bishops of a seat 'in the house of peers. 
This bill, however, was rejected in the upper house by a 
great majority ; but the puritans, far from being discouraged 
by this opposition, immediately brought in another bill for 
the total abolition of episcopacy, though they thought pro- 
per to suffer it to sleep till a more favourable opportunity. 

The commons next issued orders for demolishing all 
images, altars, and crucifixes ; and so great was the ab- 
horrence against the latter, that some of the most zealous 
would not suffer one piece of wood or stone to lie over 
another at right angles. Most of the established ceremo- 
nies of religious worship, and the ordinary vestments of its 
ministers, were considered as savouring of popery; and 
the professors of that religion, in particular, were treated 
with the utmost harshness and indignity, from which the 
queen-mother, who had been obliged by some court in- 
trigues to retire to England, and even the queen herself, 
were not exempt. 

Charles, finding by experience the ill effects of his arbi- 
trary measures, now endeavoured to regain the confidence 
of his people, by concessions, and a conformity to their 
inclinations. He passed a bill, by which the right of grant- 
ing the duties of tonnage and poundage was asserted as 
belonging to the commons alone ; and with some difficulty 
he consented to a law for triennial parliaments, which was 
clogged with such conditions, that the legitimate power 
of a king was reduced almost to a shadow. A change of 
ministers, as well as measures, was also resolved on ; ana 



293 HISTORY OF ENGLAND 

in one day several new privy-counsellors were sworn, all 
of the popular party. 

The end on which the king was most intent in changing 
his ministers was, to save the life of the earl of Strafford ; 
but the impeachment of that unfortunate nobleman was 
pushed on with the utmost vigour ; and, after long and 
solemn preparations, was brought to a final issue. Twenty- 
eight articles were exhibited against him ; but though four 
months had been employed by the managers, and all 
Strafford's answers were extemporaneous, it appears from 
comparison, that he was not only guiltless of trea- 
iPil ^'^^^' ^"^ ^^^ some degree free from censure, if we 
make allowance for human infirmities exposed to 
such difficult circumstances. The accusation and defence 
lasted eighteen days, enuring which Straffoi'd conducted 
himself with a degree of firmness, moderation, and wisdom, 
tliat extorted the admiration of his most bitter enemies; 
but the commons were determined to convict him ; and, 
therefore, on the most incompetent evidence, or rather 
against usual legal evidence, the bill of attainder passed 
with no greater opposition than that of fifty-nine votes. 

After the bill had passed the commons, the puritanical 
pulpits resounded with the necessity of executing justice 
on great delinquents ; about six thousand armed men sur- 
rounded the houses of parliament ; and the populace, 
worked up to a degree of frenzy by their leaders, flocked 
round Whitehall, where the king resided, and accompa- 
nied their demands against Strafford with the most open 
menaces. 

About eighty peers had constantly attended Strafford's 
trial ; but such were the apprehensions of the popular tu- 
mults, that only forty-five were present when the bill of 
attainder was brought into the upper house ; yet of these, 
nineteen had the courage to vote against it. On whichr 
ever side the king cast his eyes, he saw no resource or se- 
curity. All his sei*vants, consulting their own safety 
rather than their master's honour, declined to interpose 
their advice between him and his parliament ; and the 
queen, terrified with the appearance of so great a danger, 
pressed him to satisfy his people in this demand. Juxton 
alone, whose courage was not inferior to his other virtues, 
counselled the king not to act contrary to his conscience. 
Strafford, hearing of the irresolution and anxiety of 



CHARLES I. 293 

Charles, wrote to the king, and with a noble effort of mag- 
nanimity entreated him, for the sake of public peace, to 
put an end to his unfortunate, however innocent life, and 
to quiet the tumultuous populace, hy granting the request 
for which they were so importunate. *' In this," added he, 
*' my consent will more acquit you to God than all the world 
can do besides. To a willing man there is no injury," 

After suffering the most agonizing conflicts, Charles at 
last grant^ed a commission to four noblemen to give his as- 
sent to the bill ; and he also empowered them, at the same 
time, to sanction a bill which was still more fatal to his 
interests, and by which the parliament could neither be 
adjourned nor dissolved without their own consent. 

Secretary Carleton was sent by the king to inform Straf- 
ford of the final result ; and the unhappy earl at first ap- 
peared surprised ; but soon collecting his -native courage, 
he prepared for the fatal event, which was to take place 
after an interval of three days. During this period, Charles 
endeavoured to obtain from the parliament a mitigation of 
his sentence, or at least some delay, but was refused both 
requests. 

Strafibrd, in passing from his apartments to Tower-hill, 
where the scaffold was erected, stopped under Laud's win- 
dows, and entreated the assistance of his prayers. The 
aged primate, dissolved in tears, pronounced a tender 
blessing on his departing friend, and sunk into the arms 
of his attendants. Strafford, however, still superior to his 
fate, passed on with an elated countenance, and an air of 
dignity ; and his mind maintained its unbroken resolution 
amidst the terrors of death, and the unfeeling exukations 
of his misguided enemies. His speech on tiie scaffold 
was replete with fortitude and christian hope, and at one 
blow he was launched into eternity. 

Thus perished, in the forty-ninth year of his age, one of 
the most eminent personages that has appeared in Eng- 
land, and the most faithful of the adherents of Charles ; 
but his death was so far from producing that calm which 
the king had expected from the sacrifice, that the commons 
renewed their claims, extorted an abolition of the high 
commission and star-chamber courts, and remedied various 
other abuses which militated against the principles of con- 
stitutional freedom. 

During this busy period, the princess Mary had been 
25* 



294 HISTORY OF ENGLAND- 

married to William, prince of Orange, with the approba 
tion of parliament. A small committee of both house» 
was appointed to attend the king into Scotland, which he 
had resolved to visit ; and CharleSj.despoiled in England 
of a considerable part of his authority, arrived in Scotland 
only to abdicate the small share which remained to him in 
that kingdom. 

Charles, unable to resist, had been obliged to yield to 
the Irish, as well as to the Scottish and English parlia- 
ments ; and the commons of England, jealous of a stand- 
ing army in Ireland, entirely attached to the king, pre- 
vailed on his majesty, contrary to his own judgment, to 
disband it. 

Though the animosity of the Irish against the English 
nation appeared to be extinguished, they were no sooner 
freed from the dread of a military force, than a gentleman, 
called Roger More, formed the project of expelling the 
English, and asserting the independence of his native 
country. This man maintained a close correspondence 
with lord Maguire and sir Phelim O^Neale, the most pow- 
erful of the old Irish ; and he secretly went from chieftain 
to chieftain, and roused up every latent priifciple of dis- 
content. The reasons of More engaged all the heads of 
the native Irish in the conspiracy- The insurrection be- 
came general ; and a massacre of the English commenced, 
in which, when it took place, neither age, sex^ nor condi- 
tion, was spared. The old, the young, the vigorous, and 
the infirm, underwent a like fate, and were confounded in 
one common ruin. In vain was recourse had to relations 
or friends ; the dearest ties were torn asunder without pity 
or remorse ; and death was dealt by that hand, from which 
protection was implored and expected. 

Death, however, was the slightest punishment inflicted 
Dy the Irish. All the tortures which wanton cruelty could 
devise^ all the lingering pains of body, and anguish of 
mind, which malicious ingenuity could invent, were now 
put in practice ; and the generous nature of More was 
shocked at the recital of such enormous cruelties ; but he 
found that his authority, though sufficient to excite the 
Irish to an insurrection, was unable to restrain their inhu- 
manity. 

The saving of Dublin alone preserved in Ireland the 
remains of the English name. The gates of that city, 



CHARLES I. 295 

though thuoroiisly opened, received the wretched suppli- 
cants, and presented to the view a scene of human misery 
beyond description. Diseases of unknown name and spe- 
cies, derived from their muhiplied distresses, seized many, 
and put a period to their hves ; others, having now leisure 
to reflect on their severe loss of friends and fortune, cursed 
that being which they had preserved. 

Charles found himself obliged in this exigency to have 
recourse to parliament ; but that assembly manifested the 
same opposition to the king in which they had separated ; 
and the increasing of their own authority, and the dimi- 
nishing of the regal power, were the objects still pursued. 
By assuming the total management of the war in Ireland, 
they deprived the crown of its executive power ; and it 
was even roundly insinuated, that the pernicious counsels 
by which Charles had been guided, had given rise to the 
popish rebellion. 

To render the attack on royalty more systematic, the 
commons framed a general remonstrance of the state of 
the nation, comprising every real or supposed grievance, 
from the accession of Charles ; and this was published 
without being carried up to the house of peers for their 
assent and concurrence. 

This violent measure extremely agitated the sober and 
reflecting ; and Charles immediately published an answer 
to the remonstrance, in which he made the warmest pro- 
testations of his sincere attachment to the established reli- 
gion, expatiated with truth on the great concessions he had 
lately made in favour of civil liberty, and complained of 
the reproaches with which his person and government 
were attacked ; but the ears of the people were prejudiced 
against him, and nothing he could offer appeared to them 
a sufficient apology for his former misconduct. 

The commons resumed their encroachments ; and every 
measure pursued by them showed their determined resolu- 
tion to reform the whole fabric of civil and religious go- 
vernment. The majority of the peers, of course, adhered 
to the king, and saw the depression of their own order in 
the usurpations on the crown ; but some of them, finding 
their credit high with the nation, ventured to encourage 
those popular disorders, which they vainly imagined they 
could hereafter regulate and control. 

The pulpits resounded with the dangers which threaten 



296 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

ed religion ; and the populace crowded round Whitehall, 
and threw out menaces against Charles himself. Several 
gentlemen now ofTered their services to the king ; and be- 
tween them and the rabble frequent skirmishes took place. 
By way of reproach, these gentlemen gave the mobility the 
appellation of Roundheads, on account of the short cropt 
hair which they wore ; and the latter retorted by calling 
them Cavaliei's, Thus the nation, already sufficiently 
divided by religious and civil disputes, was supplied w^ith 
party names, under which the factious might rendezvous 
and signalize their mutual hatred. 

"W illiams, archbishop of York, having been abused by 
the populace, hastily called a meeting of his brethren, and 
prevailed on them to state, in an address to the king, thai 
though they had an undoubted right to sit in parliament, 
they could i.o longer attend with safety, and therefore pro- 
tested against all laws which should be made during their 
absence. This ill-timed protestation afforded an oppor- 
tunity of joy and triumph to the commons. An impeach- 
ment of high-treason was immediately sent up against the 
bishops, as endeavouring to invalidate the authority of the 
legislature ; and, in consequence, they were sequestered 
from parliament, and committed to custody. 

A few days after, Charles was betrayed into a very fatal 
act of indiscretion, to which all the ensuing disor- 
lfi4.o ^^^^ ^"^ ^^^^ wars ought immediately and di- 
'^ rectly be ascribed. Imputing the increasing inso- 
lence of the commons to his too great facility, he was ad- 
vised to exert the vigour of a sovereign, and punish the 
daring usurpations of his subjects. Accordingly, Herbert, 
attorney-general, appeared in the house of peers, and, in 
his majesty's name, entered an accusation of high -treason 
against lord Kimbolton, and five commoners, Hollis, Ha- 
selrig, Hampden, Pym, and Strode, for having endeavour- 
ed to subvert the fundamental laws and government of the 
kingdom, and to alienate the affections of the people. A 
sergeant-at-arms, in the king's name, demanded of the 
house the five members ; and being sent back without any 
positive answer, Charles resolved next day to go in person 
to the house, and see his orders executed. 

Tiie members, informed of the design, had time to with- 
draw, a moment before the king entered, who, leaving his 
retinue at the door, advanced alone through the lobby ; 



CHARLES I. 297 

and the speaker withdrawing, his majesty took possession 
of the chair. The king told the house, thiat he must have 
the accused persons produced, but that he would proceed 
against them in a fair and legal way. The commons were 
in the utmost disorder ; and when Charles was departing, 
some members cried aloud, " privilege ! privilege !" and 
the house immediately adjourned till next day. 

The same evening, the accused members removed into 
the city ; and the citizens were the whole night under arms. 
Next morning, Charles ordered the lord-mayor to summon 
a common council, which he attended himself, and told 
them, that he had accused certain men of high treason, 
against whom he would proceed in a legal way, and there- 
fore presumed that they would not meet with protection 
in the city. After many gracious expressions, he left the 
hall without receiving the applause which he expected ; 
and, in passing through the streets, he heard the cry of 
*' privilege of parliament" resounding from all quarters. 

The king, apprehensive of personal danger, retired to 
Hampton-court, overwhelmed with grief, shame, and re- 
morse. Fully sensible of his imprudence, he wished to 
waive all thoughts of a prosecution, and offered any repara- 
tion to the house for the breach of privilege, of which, he 
acknowledged, they had reason to complain. The parlia- 
ment, however, were resolved to accept of no satisfaction. 

Hitherto, a gi^eat majority of the lords had adhered to 
the king, but they now yielded to the torrent ; and the 
pressing bill, with its preamble, and the bill against bishops 
voting in parliament, were now passed. The queen pre- 
vailed with Charles to give his assent to these l>ills, in hopes 
of appeasing for a time the rage of the people, and of gain- 
ing for her an opportunity of withdrawing into Holland. 

These concessions, however, only paved the way for 
more demands ; and the parliament proceeded with hasty 
steps to monopolize all the legislative and executive power. 
That his consent to the militia bill might not be extorted 
by violence, the king retired to York, attended by his two 
sons. Here he found a zeal and attachment to which he 
had not been lately accustomed ; and from all parts of 
England, the chief nobility and gentry offered their alle- 
giance, and exhorted him to save himself and them from 
the slaveiy with which they were threatened. 

Each party now wished to throw on the other the odium 



298 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

of commencing a civil war ; and while both j/repared for 
an event which they deemed inevitable, the war of the 
pen preceded that of the sword, and daily sharpened the 
huniours of the opposite parties. Here Charles had a 
double advantage. Not only his cause was now unques- 
tionably the best ; but it was defended by lord Falkland, 
who had accepted the office of secretary, and who adorned 
the purest virtue with the riche&t gifts of nature, and the 
most valuable acquisitions of learning. 

It was evident, however, that keener weapons than ma- 
nifestoes, remonstrances, and declarations, must deter- 
mine the dispute. To the ordinance of the parliament 
concerning the militia, the king opposed his commissions 
of array ; and the counties obeyed the one or the other, 
according as they stood affected. Hull contained a large 
magazine of arms ; and it being suspected that sir John 
Hotham, the governor, was not much inclined to the par- 
liament, the king presented himself before the place, in 
hopes of quietly obtaining possession of it. The governor, 
however, shut the gates, and refused to admit the king 
with only twenty attendants. Charles immediately pro- 
claimed him a traitor ; but the parliament justified and 
applauded the action. 

Both sides now levied troops with the utmost activity. 
The parliamentary army was given to the earl of Essex, 
and in London no less than four thousand persons enlisted 
in it in one day. The splendour of nobility, however, 
with which the king was surrounded, much eclipsed the 
appearance at Westminster. Lord-keeper Littleton, and 
above forty peers of the first rank, attended Charles ; 
while the house of lords seldom consisted of more than six- 
teen members. The parliament, in order that they might 
reduce the king to despair of a compromise, sent him their 
demands in nineteen propositions ; but they appeared so 
extravagant, that Charles replied, " Should I grant these 
demands, I may be waited on bare-headed ; the title of 
majesty may be continued to me ; but as to true and real 
power, I should remain but the outside, but the picture, 
but the sign of a king." War on any terms seemed to the 
king and his counsellors preferable to such ignominious 
conditions ; and, therefore, collecting some forces, he ad- 
vanced southAvard, and at Nottingham erected the royal 
standard, the open signal of civil war. 



CHARLES r. 299 

When two names so sacred in the English constitution 
as those of King and Parliament were set in opposition, 
it is no wonder that the people, divided in their choice, 
were agitated with the most violent animosities and fac- 
tions. The nobility and more considerable gentry, dread- 
ing a total subversion of order, generally enlisted them- 
selves in defence of the king ; while most of the corpora- 
tions, as being republican in their principles of government, 
took part with the parliament. 

Never was a quarrel more unequal, than seemed at first 
that between the contending parties ; almost every advan- 
tage lay on the side of the parliament, which had seized 
the king's revenues, and converted the supplies to their 
own use ; and the torrent of general affection ran also to 
the parliament. The king's adherents were stigmatized 
with the epithets of wicked and malignant; while their 
adversaries were denominated the godly and tc ell- affected. 

The low condition in which the king appeared at Not- 
tingham, where his infantry, besides the trained bands of 
the county, did not exceed three hundred, and his cavalry 
eight hundred, confirmed the contempt pf the parliament. 
Their forces, stationed at Northampton, consisted of above 
six thousand men, well armed and appointed ; and had 
these troops advanced upon the king, they must soon have 
dissipated the small force which Charles had assembled ; 
but it was probably hoped, that the royalists, sensible of 
their feeble condition, and slender resources, would dis- 
perse of themselves, and leave their adversaries a blood- 
less victory. 

On a message being sent by Charles, with overtures for 
an accommodation, the parliament demanded as a preli- 
minary that the king should dismiss his forces, and giv'e 
up delinquents to their justice ; and both parties believed, 
that by this message and reply, the people would be ren- 
dered fully sensible of the intentions of each. 

In the mean time, Portsmouth, which had declared for 
the king, was obliged to surrender to the parliamentary for- 
ces ; and the marquis of Hertford, whom Charles had ap- 
pointed general of the western counties, and had drawn 
together a small army, being attacked by a considerable 
force under the earl of Bedford, was obliged to pass over 
into Wales, leaving sir Ralph Hopton, sir John Berkley, 



300 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

and others, with about one hundred and twenty horse, to 
march into Cornwall. 

The parliamentary army, amounting to fifteen thousand 
men, under the earl of Essex, now advanced to Northamp- 
ton ; and the king withdrew to Shrewsbury, where he made 
a public declaration of his resolution to maintain the esta- 
blished religion, and to govern in future by the laws and 
customs of the kingdom. While he lay at Shrewsbury, he 
received the nev/s of the first action of any consequence, 
which had yet taken place, and in which he was successful. 

On the appearance of civil commotions in England, the 
princes Rupert and Maurice, sons of the unfortunate pala- 
tine, and nephews of Charles, had offered their services 
to the king ; and the former, at that time, commanded a 
body of horse, which had been sent to Worcester, in order 
to watch the motions of Essex, who was marching towards 
that city. A detached party, under colonel Sandys, was 
completely routed, and their leader killed ; and this action 
acquired to prince Rupert that character for promptitude 
and courage, which he eminently displayed during the 
Nvhole course of the war. 

The king, now mustering his army, found it to amount 
to ten thousand men. The earl of Lindsey was general, 
prince Rupert commanded the horse, sir Jacob Astley the 
foot, and lord Bernard Stewart was at the head of a troop 
of guards, whose estates and revenue, according to lord 
Clarendon, were at least equal to those of all the mem- 
bers, who, at the commencement of the war, voted in both 
houses. 

With this army the king left Shrewsbury, resolved to 
bring on an action as soon as possible. The royal army 
arrived in the neighbourhood o-f Banbury, while that of 
the parliament was at Keinton, only a few miles distant. 
Both parties advancing, they met at Edge-hill, and fought 
with various success. The cavalry and the right wing of 
the parliament army were defeated ; but sir William Bal- 
four, who commanded the reserve of Essex, perceiving the 
enemy in disorder, and busied in plundering, attacked the 
king's infantry, and made a dreadful havoc. The earl of 
Lindsey was mortally wounded, and taken prisoner; and 
sir Edmund Verney, the king's standard bearer, was kill- 
ed. The two armies gradually recovered their ranks, but 
neither of them had courage for a new attack. The eail 



CHAHtES I* 301 

of Essex retired to Warwick, and Charles continued his 
inarch to Oxford, the only town at his devotion. 

After the royai army had been refreshed and recruited, 
the king advanced to Reading, from which, on the ap- 
proach of a body of horse, the governor and garrison being- 
seized with a panic, .fled precipitately to London* The 
parliament, who had expected a bloodless Victoiy over 
Charles, were now alarmed at the near approach of the 
royal army, and voted an address for a treaty. The king 
named Windsor as the place of conference ; but Essex 
naving arrived at London, Charles attacked two regiments 
quartered at Brentford, beat them from that village, and 
took about five hundred prisoners. Loud complaints were 
raised against this attack, pending a negotiation ; and the 
city, inflamed with resentment, joined its trained bands to 
the parliamentary army, which, by that means, was ren- 
dered much superior to that of the king, who, in conse- 
quence, judged it prudent to retire to Reading, and from 
thence to Oxford. 

The conferences between the king and parliament had 
commenced without any cessation of hostilities ; and it 
was soon found, that there was no probability of 
coming to an agreement* The earl of Essex laid i^j^q 
siege to Reading ; mid Fielding, the governor, con- 
sented to yield the town, on condition that he should bring 
off the garrison, and deliver up deserters. For this last 
article, so ignominious in itself, and so prejudicial to the 
king*s interests, the governor was tried by a council of 
war, and condemned to lose his life, but the sentence was 
afterwards remitted. 

In the north, lord Fairfax commanded for the parlia- 
ment, and the earl of Newcastle tor the king. The latter 
United in a league for the king, the counties of Northum- 
berland, Cumberland, Westmoreland, and Durham, and 
afterwards engaged some other counties in the association. 
Finding that Fairfax was making some progress in York- 
shire, he advanced with a body of four thousand men, and 
took possession of York ; and at Tadcaster he attacked 
the forces of the parliament, and dislodged them ; but bis 
victory was not decisive. 

Sir William Waller began to distinguish himself as a 
parliamentary general. After taking Winchester and 
Chichester, he defeated lord Herbert, who had laid sie«-e 
26 



302 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

to Gloucester, with a considerable body of forces levied in 
Wales. 

In the west, sir Bevil Granville, sir Ralph Hopton, sir 
Nicholas Slanning, Arundel, and Trevannion, had, at their 
own charges, raised an army for the king, and successively 
defeated the parliamentary generals, Ruthven and lord 
Stamford, on Bradoc Down, and at Stratton. After this 
success, the attention of both king and parliament was 
directed to the west ; and the marquis of Hertford and 
prince Maurice having joined the Cornish army, over-ran 
the county of Devon, and threatened that of Somerset. 
Waller advanced with a considerable force to check their 
progress ; and the two armies met at Lansdown, near 
Bath, and fought a pitched battle, but without any deci- 
sive event. The gallant Granville, however, was killed in 
the action, and Hopton was dangerously wounded The 
royalists next attempted to march eastwards, and join the 
king's forces at Oxford ; but Waller hanging on their rear, 
a battje took place at Round way-down, near Devizes, in 
which the parliamentary army was entirely routed and dis- 
persed. This important victory struck the parliament 
with dismay, which was increased by the death of the 
celebrated Hampden, who fell in a skirmish at Chalgrove, 
in Oxfordshire. Many were the virtues and talents of this 
eminent man, whose valour in war equalled his eloquence 
in the senate, and his resolution at the bar ; and Charles 
valued him so highly, that when he heard of his being 
wounded, he offered to send his own surgeon to attend him. 

Essex, discouraged by this event, retired towards Lon- 
don ; and the king, freed from the enemy, sent his army 
westward, under prince Rupert, who besieged and took 
the city of Bristol. Charles joined the camp at Bristol ; 
and some strongly urged him to march directly to London, 
where all was confusion and dismay, as the most likely 
means of rendering the royal cause successful over its ad- 
versaries ; but the resolution of investing the city of Glou- 
cester was fatally adopted. 

In the beginning of the summer, a combination had 
been formed, by Edmund Waller, the poet, a member of 
thi( lower house, to oblige the parliament to accept of rea- 
50 lable conditions, and to restore peace to the nation. 
fi r the execution of this project, he associated with him 
Tnn iins, his brother-in-law, and Chaloner, Uie friend of 



CHARLES I. 803 

Tomkins, whose influence in the city was considerable ; 
but iiitelligence of tlie design being conveyed to Pym, tliey 
V >: . tried and condemned by a court martial ; and Tom- 
ij^t- ciud Chaloner were executed. Waller, with much dif- 
^a-t- lity, escaped, on paying a fine often thousand pounds. 

After relieving Gloucester, besieged by the king, Essex 
proceeded towards London ; but when he reached New- 
bury, he found that the royal army already occupied the 
place, and that an action was unavoidable. On both sides, 
the battle was fought with desperate valour ; but night put 
an end to the action, and left the victory undecided. Es- 
sex continued to march to London ; and the king follow- 
ing, retook Reading, in which he placed a garrison. In 
the battle of Newbury, fell Lucius Carey, viscount Falk- 
land, secretary to the king ; a man eminent for his abili- 
ties, and for every virtue which adorns humanity. On the 
morning of the day on which he met his fate, he had shown 
more than usual care in dressing himself, and gave for a 
reason, that the enemy might not find his body in any slo- 
venly indecent situation. " I am weary," he subjoined, 
*' of the times, and foresee much misery to my country; 
but believe I shall be out of it ere night." He was only 
thirty-four years of age at the time of his death. 

In the north, the influence and popularity of the earl, 
now created marquis of Newcastle, had raised a consider- 
able force for the king ; but he was opposed by two men, 
on whom the event of the war finally depended, and who 
began about this time to be distinguished for their va- 
lour and military conduct. These were sir Thomas Fair- 
fax, son of the lord of that name, and Oliver Cromwell. 
The former gained a considerable victory at Wakefield, 
and the latter at Gainsborough ; but these defeats of 
the royalists were more than compensated by the total 
defeat of lord Fairfax, at Atherston Moor. After tliis vic- 
tory, Newcastle sat down with his army before Hull ; but 
Hotham, the former goverior, h?iving expressed an inten- 
tion to favour the king's interest, had some time before 
been sent to London, where he and his son fell victims to 
the severity of the parliament. 

Newcastle suff*ered so much by a sally of the garrison, 
that he was obliged to raise the siege ; and about the same 
hme, Manchester having joined Cromwell and young Fair- 
fax, obtained a considerable victory over the royalists at 



304 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Horncastle. Thus fortune seemed to balance her favours ; 
but the king's party still remained much superior in the 
north ; and had it not been for the garrison of Hull, which 
awed Yorkshire, a conjunction of the northern forces with 
the ai'my of the south had probably enabled Charles to 
march directly to London, and finish the war, instead of 
wasting both his time and resources in the siege of Glou- 
cester. 

As the event became more doubtful, both parties sought 
for assistance ; the parliament in Scotland, and the king in 
Ireland. The former easily prevailed on the Scottish co- 
venanters to espouse their cause, by joining in a solemn 
league and covenant, mutually to defend each other 
against all opponents, and to promote their respective aims 
and designs ; and Charles, having agreed to a cessation 
of hostilities in Ireland, where the English had regained 
the ascendancy, procured considerable bodies of troops 
from that kingdom. 

The king, that he might make preparations for the en- 
suing campaign, endeavoured to avail himself of the ap- 
pearance of a parliament, and summoned to Oxford 
1 fi J.i ^^^ ^^® members of either house who adhered to his 
interest. A great majority of the peers attended 
him ; but the commons were not half so numerous as those 
who sat at Westminster. The parliament at Westminster 
having voted an excise on beer, wine, and other commo- 
dities, those at Oxford imitated the example, and conferred 
that revenue on the king ; and this was the first introduc- 
tion of an excise into England. 

The same winter the famous Pym died ; a man as much 
hated by one party as respected by the other. However, 
he had been little studious of improving his private for- 
tune ; and the parliament, out of gratitude, discharged 
the debts which he had contracted. 

The forces from Ireland, under the command of lord 
Biron, after obtaining considerable advantages in Cheshire, 
invested Nantwich, but were completely defeated by sir 
Thomas Fairfax, who, in the sequel, routed a large body 
of troops at Selby. Leven, the Scotch commander, having 
joined lord Fairfax, they sat down before York, to which 
the army of the royalists had retired. Hopeton was de- 
feated by Waller at Cherrington ; but prince Rupert relie- 
ved Newark, which the parliamentary forces had besieged. 



CHARLES U 305 

The earl of Manchester having taken Lincoln, united 
iiis army to that of Leven and Fairfax ; and York, though 
vigorously defended by Newcastle, was reduced to the last 
extremity, when the besiegers were alarmed by the ap- 
proach of prince Rupert, at the head of twenty thousand 
men. .The Scottish and parliamentary generals drew up 
on Marston Moor to give battle to the royalists ; and 
Newcastle endeavoured to persuade the prince to wait, 
and leave the enemy to dissolve by their growing dissen- 
tions ; but Rupert, whose martial disposition was not suf- 
ficiently tempered with prudence, rejected the advice, and 
led on his troops to the charge. This action was obsti- 
nately disputed, and fought with various success ; but after 
the utmost efforts of courage by both parties, victory whol- 
ly turned on the side of the parliament. The prince's 
train of artillery was taken, and his whole army pushed off 
the field of battle. 

This engagement, in which Cromwell manifested great 
courage and abilities, proved very fatal to the king's inte- 
rest. Newcastle, disgusted at the treatment which he had 
received from the prince, and enraged that all his success- 
ful labours should be rendered abortive by one act of te- 
merity, determined to leave the kingdom. He retired to 
the continent, where he lived till the restoration, in great 
necessity, and saw with indifference his opulent fortune se- 
questered by those who assumed the reins of government. 

Prince Rupert drew off the remains of his army, and 
retired into Lancashire ; and York surrendered to Fairfax, 
while Newcastle was taken by storm. 

Ruthven, a Scotsman, who had been created earl of 
Brentford, managed the king's affairs in the south with 
more success. Essex and Waller marched with their 
combined armies towards Oxford ; and the king, leaving 
a numerous garrison in that city, dexterously passed be- 
tween the two armies, and marched towards Worcester. 
Waller received orders from Essex to follow h'm, while he 
himself proceeded westward in quest of prince Maurice. 
Waller had approached within two miles of the royal 
camp, when he received intelligence that the king had di- 
rected his course towards Shrewsbury; and the parlia- 
mentary general hastened by quick marches to that town ; 
but Charles suddenly retraced his former steps, and ha- 
ving reinforced his army, in his turn marched out in quest 
26* 



306 HISTORY OV JENQLAND* 

of Waller. At Crupredy-bridge, near Banbuiy, the two 
armies faced each other, with only the Cherwell running 
between them. Waller, attempting to pass the bridge, 
was repulsed ; and his army, disheartened by this unex- 
pected defeat, began to melt away by desertion. The king 
thought he might safely leave it, and marched westward 
against Essex ; and having cooped him up in a narrow 
corner at Lestithiel, reduced him to the last extremity. 
Essex, Robarts, and some of the principal officers, esca- 
ped in a boat to Plymouth. Balfour, with his horse, 
passed the king's post in a thick mist ; but the foot under 
Skippon were obliged to surrender. 

That the king might have less reason to exult in this ad- 
vantage, the parliament opposed to him very numerous for- 
ces under Manchester, Cromwell, and Waller. Charles 
chose his post at Newbury, where the parliamentay armies 
attacked him with great vigour ; and though the king's 
troops defended themselves with valour, they were over- 
powered by numbers, and night only saved them from a 
total defeat, and enabled them to reach Oxford. 

The discordant opinions which had arisen among the 
parliamentary generals in the field, were now transferred 
to the senate. The independents now appeared a distinct 
body from the presbyterians, and betrayed very different 
views and pretensions. Vane, Crom-r^U, Fiennes, and 
St. John, were regarded as the leaders of the former ; but 
as a great majority in the nation weie attached to the 
presbyterians, it was only by cunning and deceit at first, 
and afterwards by military violence, that the independents 
could entertain any hopes of success. 

The parliament having passed a self-denying ordinance, 
by which the members of both houses were excluded from 
all civil and military employments, Essex, Manchester, 
and others, resigned their commands. 

It was agreed to recruit the army to twenty-two thou- 
sand men, and sir Thomas Fairfax was appointed 
I* * general; a man eminent for his courage and hu- 
manity, but of little genius except in war. Crom- 
well, being a member of the lower house, should have been 
discarded with the rest ; but he was saved by that politi- 
cal craft in which he was so eminent. By an artifice, 
which was, doubtless, concerted between them, Fairfax 
re<iuesteil that he might be favoured with the advice and 



CHARLfiS I. 307 

assistance of Cromwell, for another campaign ; and thus 
the independents prevailed by art and cunning, and be- 
stowed the whole military authority apparently on Fairfax, 
but in reality on Cromwell. The former was entirely go- 
verned by the genius and sagacity of the latter, whose 
strokes of character were only developed by the events in 
which he was concerned. His extensive capacity enabled 
him to form the most enlarged projects, and his enterpri- 
sing genius was not dismayed by the boldest and most 
dangerous. By the most profound dissimulation, the most 
oblique and refined arti%e, and the semblance of the 
greatest moderation and simplicity, he concealed an am- 
bitious and imperious mind, which ultimately led him to 
the summit of power. 

Negotiations for peace were once more renewed, though 
with small hopes of success. Commissioners on both 
sides met at Uxbridge ; but it was soon found impractica- 
ble to come to any amicable adjustment on the important 
articles of religion, the militia, and Ireland. Charles re- 
fused to abolish episcopacy ; and the parliament expected 
that the power of the sword, and the sovereignty of Ire- 
land, should remain in their hands. 

A short time before the commencement of this treaty, 
archbishop Laud, after undergoing a long imprisonment, 
was brought to his trial for high treason, in endeavouring 
to subvert the fundamental laws of the kingdom. After a 
long trial, the commons, unable to obtain a judicial sen- 
tence, passed an ordinance for taking away the life of this 
aged prelate, who sunk not under the horrors of his exe- 
cution. " No one," said he, " can be more willing to send 
me out of life, than I am to go." His head was severed 
from his body at one blow, which removed him to a better 
world. 

While the king's affairs declined in England, some events 
took place in Scotland which seemed to promise a moi*e 
prosperous issue in ^hat kingdom. The young earl of 
Montrose, being introd jced to his majesty, was so won by 
the civilities and caresses of the king, that though he had 
been employed in the first Scottish insurrection, he devoted 
himself from that time entirely to the service of Charles. 
Montrose, not discouraged by the defeat at Marston Moor, 
having obtained from the earl of Antrim, a nobleman of 
Ireland, a supply of eleven hundred men from that coup- 



308 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

try, immediately declared himself, and entered on the ca 
reer which has rendered his name imniorlal. Severa) 
hundreds of his countrymen soon flocked to his standard ; 
and, with this small force, he hastened to attack lord El- 
cho, who lay at Perth, with an army of six thousand men. 
Having received the fire of the enemy, which was chiefly 
answered by a volley of stones, for want of arms and am- 
munition, he rushed among them, sword in hand, and 
throwing them into confusion, obtained a complete victory, 
with the slauofhter of two thousand covenanters. Though 
the majority of the kingdom was attached to the covenant, 
yet the enterprises of Montrose were attended with the most 
brilliant success ; and, after prevailing in many battles, 
prepared himself for marching into the southern provinces, 
in order to put a final period to the power of the co- 
venanters. 

While the flame of war was thus rekindled in the north, 
it blazed out with no less fury in the south. Fairfax, or 
rather Cromwell, had new modelled the parliamentary 
army. Regimental chaplains were in a great measure set 
aside ; and the officers assuming the spiritual duty, united 
it with their military functions, and during the intervals of 
action, occupied themselves in sermons, prayers, and ex- 
hortations. The private soldiers, seized with the same 
fanaticism, mutually stimulated each other to farther ad- 
vances in grace ; and when they were marching to battle, 
the whole field resounded as well with psalms and spiritual 
songs as with the instruments of military music. 

At Nesby was fought, with nearly equal forces, a deci- 
sive and well disputed action between the king and the 
parliament. Charles led on his main body, and displayed 
in this action all the conduct of a prudent general, and all 
the valour of a stout soldier. Fairfax and Skippon en- 
countered him, and well supported the reputation which 
they had previously acquired. Cromwell also, by his pru- 
dence and valour, very materially Contributed to turn the 
fortune of the day. The royal infantry was totally dis- 
comfited, and Charles was obliged to quit the field, and 
leave the victory to the enemy. The slain on the side of 
the parliament, however, exceeded those of the king; but 
Fairfax made five hundred officers prisoners, and four 
thousand private men, and took all the king's artillery 
and ammuiT^tioii. 



CHARLES I. 309 

TIi€ affairs of the royalists now declined in all quarters. 
CJiarles escaped to Oxford, where he shut himself 
up with the broken remains of his army. The ^'f-iA 
prince of Wales retired to France, where he joined 
the queen ; the west submitted to the arms of Fairfax and 
Cromwell ; and the defeat of Montrose at Philip-haugh, 
after a series of splendid actions, seemed to seal the final 
destiny of the king's party. 

The only resource which remained to Charles, was de- 
rived from the intestine dissentions of his enemies. The 
pregbyterians and independents fell into contests concern- 
ing the division of the spoil ; and their religious and civil 
disputes agitated the whole nation. In the mean time, 
Fairfax, with a victorious army, approached to lay siege to 
Oxford, which must infallibly surrender. In this despe- 
rate extremity, the king embraced a measure, which had 
been suggested by Montreville, the French ambassador, of 
seeking the protection of the Scottish army, which at that 
time lay before Newark. 

The Scottish generals and commissioners affected great 
surprise on the appearance of the king ; and the parlia- 
ment, hearing of his escape from Oxford, threatened instant 
death to whosoever should harbour or conceal him. The 
Scots, therefore, in order to justify themselves, assured 
the parliament, that they had entered into private under- 
standing with his majesty. After keeping the king a pri- 
soner for some time, to the eternal disgrace of the agents 
in this shameful business, they agreed to surrender him to 
the parliament for 400,000 pounds, half of which was to 
be paid instantly ; and thus the Scottish nation have been 
stained with the infamy of selling their king, and betray- 
ing their prince for money. 

When intelligence of the final resolution of the Scots to 
surrender him was brought to Charles, he was playing at 
chess ; and so little was. he affected by the news, that he 
continued his game without interruption, or any appear- 
ance of discomposure. The king, being delivered by the 
Scots to the English commissioners, was conducted to 
Holdenby, in the county of Northampton, where his an- 
cient servants were dismissed, and all communication with 
his friends or family was prohibited. 

About this time died the earl of Essex, who, sensible of 
the excesses to which affairs had been carried, had resol- 



310 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

ved to conciliate a peace, and to remedy, as far as possi- 
ble, all those ills to which, from mistake rather than any 
bad intentions, he had himself so much contributed. His 
death, therefore, at this conjuncture, was a oublic misfor- 
tune. 

The dominion of the parliament, however, was of short 
duration. The presbyterians retained the superiority 
among the commons, but the independents predominated 
in th« army. Some evident symptoms of disaifection ha- 
ving appeared among the soldiers, the parliament sent 
Cromwell, Ireton, and Fleetwood, to the army, to inquire 
into the cause of the disorders. These men were the se- 
cret authors of the discontents, which, while they pretended 
to appease them, they failed not to foment. 

In opposition to the parliament at Westminster, a mili- 
tary parliament was formed, together with a council of the 
principal officers, on the model of the house of peers ; and 
representatives of the army were composed, by the election 
of two private men or inferior officers, under the title of 
agitators, from each troop or company. This court de- 
clared that they found only grievances in the army, and 
voted the conduct of parliament unsatisfactory ; and, fore- 
seeing the result of matters, they took care to strike a 
blow, which at once decided the victory in their favour. 

A party of five hundred horse appeared at Holdenby, 
under the command of cornet Joice, who had once been a 
tailor, but was now an active agitator in the army. Joice 
came into the king's presence, armed with pistols, and told 
him he must immediately go along with him. " Whither 1" 
said his majesty. " To the army," replied Joice. " By 
what warrant 1" asked the king. Joice pointed to the sol- 
diers, who were tall, handsome, and well accoutred. " Your 
warrant," said Charles, smiling, " is writ in fair charac- 
ters, legible without spelling." Resistance was of course 
vain ; and the king, stepping into his coach, was safely 
conducted to the army, which was hastening to its rendez- 
vous at Triplo-heath, near Cambridge. 

Fairfax himself was ignorant of this manoeuvre ; and it 
was not till the arrival of Cromwell, who had deceived the 
parliament by his profound dissimulation and consummate 
hypocrisy, that the intrigue was developed. On his arrival 
in the camp, he was received with loud acclamations, and 
was instantly invested with the supreme command. 



CHARLES I. 311 

The piidiameiitj though at present defenceless, possessed 
many resources; and, therefore, Cromwell advanced upon 
them with the army, and arrived in a few days at St. Al- 
ban's. The parliament, conscious of their want of popu- 
larity, were reduced to despair ; and the army, hoping by 
terror alone to effect all their purposes, halted at St. Al- 
ban's, and entered into negotiation with their masters. 

The army, in their usurpations on the parliament, copied 
exactly the model which the parliament itself had set them 
in their recent usurpations on the crown. Every day they 
rose in their demands; and one concession only paved 
the way to another still more exorbitant. At last, there 
being no signs of resistance, in order to save appearances, 
they removed, at the desire of the parliament, to a greater 
distance from London, and fixed their head-quarters at 
Reading. 

Charles was carried with them in all their marches, and 
found himself much more formidable than at Holdenby. 
All his friends had access to him ; and his children were 
once allowed to visit him, and they passed a few days at 
Caversham, where he resided. Cromwell, as well as the 
leaders of all factions, paid court to him ; and so confident 
was the king, that all parties would at length have recourse 
to his lawful authority, that on several occasions he ob- 
sei'ved, *' You cannot be without me ; you cannot settle the 
nation, but by my assistance." 

Charles, however, though he wished to hold the balance 
between the opposite parties, entertained more hopes of 
an accommodation with the army, and made the most splen- 
did offers to Ireton pnd Cromwell. The latter pretended 
to listen to his proposals ; but, it is probable, that he had 
conceived the design of seizing the sceptre. While Crom- 
well, however, allured the king with the hopes of an ac- 
commodation, he systematically pursued his plan of hum- 
bling the parliament. A petition against some laws was 
presented at Westminister, by the apprentices and seditious 
multitude; and the house was obliged to reverse its votes. 
Intelligence of this tumult being conveyed to Reading, the 
army, under pretence of restoring liberty to that assembly, 
marched to Hounslow, where the speakers of tlie two hou- 
ses, Manchester and Lanthal, having secretly retired by 
collusion, presented themselves with their maces, and all 
the ensigns of their dignity, and complained of the violence 



312 msTOtlY OP ENGLAND* 

put Upon them. The two speakers were received with ac* 
clamationS) and conducted by a military force to AVest* 
minster; and every act which had passed in their absence 
was annulled, and the parliament reduced to a regularly 
formed servitude* 

The leaders of the army,*having now established their 
dominion over the city and parliament^ ventured to bring 
the king to Hampton Court ; but intelligence being daily 
brought him of menaces thrown out by the agitators, and 
his guards being doubled with the view of rendering him 
uneasy in his present situation, Charles adopted the sud* 
den and impolitic resolution of withdrawing himself; and 
attended only by Sir John Berkley, Ashburnham, and 
Legge, he privately left Hampton Court, and arrived next 
day at Tichfield. Sensible, however, that he could not 
long remain concealed there, he imprudently put himself 
into the hands of Hammond, governor of the Isle of Wight, 
a man entirely dependent on Cromwell, by whom he was 
carried to Carisbroke castle, and confined a prisoner^ 
though treated with the externals of duty and respect. 

Cromwell, now freed from all anxiety in regard to the 
custody of the king's person, and being superior to the par«* 
liament) applied himself sel'iously to quell those disorders 
in the army which he himself had raised. He issued or- 
ders for discontinuing the meetings of the agitators ; but 
these levellers, as they were called, joined in seditious re- 
monstrances and petitions ; and Cromwell, at the time of 
a review, seizing the ringleaders before their companions, 
caused one mutineer instantly to be shot, and struck such 
terror into the rest, that they quietly returned to discipline 
and duty. 

Cromwell paid great deference to the counsels of Ire^on, 
a man who had grafted the soldier on the lawyer, and the 
statesman on the saint ; and by his suggestion, he secretly 
called a council of the chief officers at Windsor, where was 
first opened the daring design of bringing the king to con- 
dign punishment for mal-administration. This measure 
being resolved on, it was requisite gradually to conduct the 
parliament from one violence to another, till this last act 
of atrocious iniquity should appear inevitable. At the in- 
stigation of the independents and army, that assembly 
framed four proposals, to which they demanded the king's 
positive assent, before they would deign to treat. The first 



CHARLES I. f*^ 

was, that he should invest the parliament with the mihtai7 
power for twenty years ; the second, that he should recal 
all his proclamations and declarations against the parlia- 
ment, and acknowledge that assembly to have taken arms 
in their just and necessary defence ; the third, that he 
should annul all the acts, and void all the patents of peer- 
age, which had passed the great seal, since the commence- 
ment of the^civil wars ; and the fourth, that he should give 
the two houses power to adjourn as they thought proper. 

Charles, though a prisoner, regarded these pretensions 
as exorbitant, and desired that all the terms on both sides 
should be adjusted, before any concession on either was 
insisted on. The republicans pretended to take 
fire at this reply ; and Cromwell, after expatiating , ^ .q 
on the valour and godliness of the army, added, 
" teach them not by neglecting your own safety and that 
of the kingdom, in which their's too is involved, to imagine 
themselves betrayed, and their interests abandoned to the 
rage and malice of an irreconcilable enemy, whom, for 
your sake, they have dared to provoke. Beware, (and at 
these words he laid his hand on his sword,) beware lest 
despair cause them to seek safety by some other means 
than by adhering to }'ou, who know not how to consult 
your own safety." 

Ninety-one members, however, had still the courage to 
oppose this menace of Cromwell ; but the majority deci- 
ded that no more addresses were to be made to the king, 
nor any letters or messages received from him, and that it 
should be treason for any one to have intercourse with him, 
without a permission from parliament. By this vote the 
king was actually dethroned ; and this violent measure 
was supported by a declaration of the commons, equally 
violent, in which the character of Charles was aspersed 
with the foulest calumnies. 

Scotland, wher.ce the king's cause had received the first 
fatal disaster, secned now to promise its support and as- 
sistance. Alarmef' at the subjection of parliament to the 
army, and the confinement of Charles, the Scots had re- 
solved to arm forty thousand men, in support of their na- 
tive prince, and secretly entered into correspondence with 
the English royalists, sir Marmaduke Langdale and sir 
Philip Musgrave, who had levied considerable forces in 
the north <)f England. Various combinations and con 
27 



3J4 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

spiracles for the same purpose were everywhere forming; 
and seventeen ships, lying at the mouth of the river, decla- 
red for the king ; and setting their admiral ashore, sailed 
over to Holland, where the prince of Wales took the com- 
mand of them. 

Cromwell and his military council, however, prepared 
themselves with vigour and conduct for defence ; and 
while the forces were employed in all quarters, parliament 
having regained some share of liherty, repealed the vote 
for non-addressing, and five peers and ten commoners were 
sent to Newport, in the Isle of Wight, as commissioners to 
treat with Charles. 

From the time that the king had been a prisoner in Ca- 
risbroke castle, he had totally neglected his person, and 
had suffered his beard to grow long. His hair had become 
almost entirely gray, either from the decUne of years, or 
the load of sorrow with which he was oppressed. The vi- 
gour of his mind, however, was still unbroken ; and alone, 
and unsupported, for two months, he maintained an argu- 
ment against fifteen men of the greatest parts and capacity, 
witliout any advantage being obtained over him. Of all 
the demands of the parliament, Charles refused only two : 
he would neither give up his friends to punishment, noi 
abolish episcopacy, though he was willing to temper it. 

In the mean time, Cromwell, with eight thousand men, 
attacked and defeated the numerous armies of twenty 
thousand, commanded by Hamilton and Langdale, and 
took the former prisoner. Following up his advantage, 
he marched into Scotland, where he exercised the most 
tyrannical power; and, in conjunction with those of his own 
party, placed all authority in the hands of the most violent 
anti-royalists. Colchester, after holding out for the king to 
the last extremity, under sir Charles Lucas and sir George 
Lisle, was obliged to surrender ; and Fairfax, instigated 
by the inhuman Ireton, caused those officers to be shot. 

These successes of the army had subdued all their ene- 
mies, except the helpless king and parliament ; and the 
council of general officers, at the suggestion of Cromwell, 
now demanded the dissolution of that assembly, and a more 
equal representation in future. At the same time thej^ ad- 
vanced the troops to Windsor, and ordered the king to be 
removed to Hurst castle in Hampshire, where he was kept 
in close confinement. 



CHARLES I. ISIG 

The parliament, however, did not lose their courage, 
but set aside the remonstrances of the army, and issued 
orders that it should not advance nearer to London. The 
parliament, however, had to deal with men who would 
not be intimidated by words, nor retarded by any scrupu- 
lous delicacy. The generals marched the army to Lon- 
don, and surrounded the parliament with their hostile pre- 
parations. In this situation, the parliament had the reso- 
lution to attempt to close their treaty with the king ; and 
after a violent debate of three days, it was carried by a 
majority of one hundred and twenty-nine, against eighty- 
three, in the house of commons, that the king's conces- 
sions were a foundation for the houses to proceed upon in 
the settlement of the kingdom. 

Next day, however, when the commons were about to 
meet, colonel Pride, formerly a drayman, having sur- 
sounded the house with two regiments, forty-one members 
of the presbyterian party were seized, and above one hun- 
dred and sixty more were excluded. In short, none but 
the most determined independents were allowed to enter, 
and these did not exceed the number of fifty or sixty. 
This invasion of the parliament commonly passed under 
the name of colonel Pride'' s purge. The independents in- 
stantly reversed the former vote, and declared the king's 
concessions unsatisfactory ; they renewed the former vote 
of non-addresses ; and committed some of the leading 
presbyterian members to prison. 

The council of officers now took into consideration a 
scheme, called " the agreement of the people," which laid 
the basis of a republic ; and, that they might complete their 
iniquity and fanatical extravagance, they urged on this 
shadow of a parliament to bring in a specific charge against 
their sovereign. Accordingly, a vote was passed, decla- 
ring it treason in a king to levy war against his parliament, 
and appointed a high court of justice to tiy Charles for 
this new invented treason. This vote was sent up to the 
bouse of peers ; and that assembly, which was in general 
very thinly attended, was on that day fuller than usual, 
and consisted of sixteen members ; but without one dis- 
senting voice, they instantly rejected the vote of the lower 
house, and adjourned for ten days, in hopes, by this delay, 
to retard the furious career of the commons. 

That body, however, having assumed as a principle, 
which is true in theory, though false in practice, " that tb^ 



316 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

people are the origin of all just power," they declared that 
the commons represented the people, and that their enact- 
ments have the force of laws, without the consent of king 
or house of peers. The ordinance for the trial of Charles 
Stuart was then again read, and unanimously agreed to. 

Colonel Harrison, the son of a butcher, and the most 
furious enthusiast of the army, was despatched with a 
strong party to conduct the king to London ; and it appears 
that, at this time, his majesty expected assassination, and 
could not believe that they really intended to conclude their 
acts of violence by a public trial and execution. 

AJ' things, however, being adjusted, the high court of 
justice was fully constituted. It consisted of one hundred 
and thirty-three persons named by the commons ; but 
scarcely more than seventy ever sat ; so difficult was it to 
engage men of any name or character in that atrocious 
measure. Cromwell, Ireton, Harrison, and the chief offi- 
cers of the army, most of them of low birth, were mem- 
bers, together with some of the lower house, and a few 
citizens of London. The twelve judges were at first ap- 
pointed in the number ; but as they had affirmed that the 
proceeding was illegal, their names were struck out. 
Bradshaw, a lawyer, was chosen president, and Coke was 
appointed solicitor to the people of England. 

The court sat in Westminster-hall ; and the king being 
arraigned for levying war againt the parliament, was im- 
peached as a tyrant, traitor, and murderer. Though long 
detained a prisoner, and now produced as a criminal, 
Charles sustained the dignity of a monarch, and with great 
temper and force, declined the authority of the court. 
Three times was he brought before his judges, and as of- 
ten declined their jurisdiction. On the fourth, the court 
having examined some witnesses, by whom it was proved 
that the king had appeared in arms against the forces com- 
missioned by the parliament, they pronounced sentence 
against him. 

In this last scene, Charles forgot not his character, either 
as a man or a prince. Firm and intrepid, he maintained 
in each reply the utmost perspicuity in thought and ex- 
pression ; mild and equable, he rose into no passion at the 
uinisual authority assumed over him. His soul, without 
effort or aliectation, seemed only to remain in the situa- 
tion familiar to it, and to look down with contempt on :jI! 




Charles the First 'parting with his Children. 




Execution of Charles the First, 



CttARLES I.. 317 

the efforts of human maUce. The soldiers were brought, 
though with difficuhy, to cry aloud for justice : " Poor 
souls," said the king, " for a little money they would do 
as much against their commanders." 

Three days only were allowed the king between his sen- 
tence and execution*; and this interval was passed in read- 
ing and devotion, and in conversing with the princess 
Elizabeth an^ the duke of Gloucester, who alone of his 
family remained in England. 

The morning of the fatal day, which was the 30th of 
January, 1649, Charles rose early, and calling Herbert, 
one of his attendants, bade him employ more than usual 
care in dressing him, and preparing him for such a great 
and joyful solemnity. Juxon, bishop of London, a man 
endued with the same mild and steady virtues as his mas- 
ter, assisted him in his devotions, and paid the last me- 
lancholy duties to his sovereign. As he was preparing 
himself for the block, Juxon said, " there is, sir, but one 
stage more, which, though turbulent, is yet a very short 
one. Consider, it will soon carry you a great way : it will 
carry you from earth to heaven, and there you shall find, 
to your great joy, the prize to which you hasted, a crown 
of glory." " I go," replied the king, " from a corruptible 
to an incorruptible crown, where no disturbance can have 
place." At one blow his head was severed from his body 
by a man in a visor ; and another, in a similar disguise, 
held up to the spectators the head streaming with blood, 
and cried aloud, *' This is the head of a traitor !" 

It is impossible to describe the grief, indignation, and 
astonishment, which took place throughout the nation, on 
this melancholy occasion. Each reproached himself either 
with active disloyalty, or with a too indolent defence of the 
royal cause. The generous Fairfax, it appears, had de- 
signe 1 to rescue the king from the scaffold, with his own 
regiment; but this intention being known, he was artfully 
engaged by Cromwell in prayer with Hamson, till the fatal 
blow was struck. 

The moment before his execution, Charles had said to 
Juxon, in an earnest and impressive manner, remember ! 
and the generals insisted with the prelate, that he should 
inform them of the king's meaning. Juxon told them, 
that the king had charged him to inculcate on his son the 
forgiveness of his murderers ; a sentiment which in his 
37* 



818 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

last speech he had before declared. As a king, Charles 
was not free from faults ; but as a man, few had ever filled 
the throne, who were entitled to more unqualified praise. 

A few days after the consummation of this tragedy, the 
commons passed a vote, abolishing the house of peers as 
dangerous and useless, and a like vote was passed in re- 
gard to the monarchy. It was declared high-treason to 
proclaim or otherwise acknowledge Charles Stuart, com* 
monly called the prince of Wales ; and the commons or- 
dered a new great seal to be engraved, on which that as- 
sembly was represented, with a legend, " On the first year 
of freedom, by God's blessing restored, 1648.'* 

CHAP. XII. 

The Commonwealth* 

On the death of Charles, every person had framed the 
model of a republic, which how new or absurd soever, he 
wished to impose on his fellow citizens. The le- 
IRIQ ^^l^®"^"* insisted on an equal distribution of power 
and property ; the millenarians, or fifth monarchy 
men, required that government itself should be abolished, 
to prepare the way for the dominion of Christ, whose se- 
cond coming they suddenly expected ; while the antino- 
niians asserted, that the obligations of morality and natu- 
ral law were superseded, and that the elect were guided 
by an internal principle more perfect and divine. 

The royalists were inflamed with the highest resent- 
ment against their ignoble adversaries ; the presbyterians 
were enragfed to find that the fruits of their labours were 
ravished from them, by the treachery or superior cunnmg 
of their associates ; and the army, the only support of the 
independent republican faction, was actuated by a religious 
frenzy, which rendered it dangerous even to its friends. 

The only poise against these irregularities of action, 
was the great influence of Oliver Cromwell. Hating mo- 
narchy, while a subject ; despising liberty, while a citizen ; 
he was secretly paving the way, by artifice and courage, to 
his own unlimited authority. 

The parliament now named a council of state, consisting 
of thirty-eight members, to whom all addresses were made, 
and who digested all business before it was introduced into 
the house. Foreign powers, occupied in wars amonf| 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 319 

themselves, had no leisure or inclination to interpose in 
the domestic dissentions of this island ; and the young 
king, poor and neglected, comforted himself amidst his 
present distress only with the hopes of better fortune. 
The situation of Scotland and Ireland alone gave any in- 
quietude to the new republic. 

Argyle and his partisans had proclaimed Charles II. in 
Scotland ; but on condition " of his good behaviour and 
strict observance of the covenant:" in Ireland, the duke of 
Ormond having contrived to assemble an army of sixteen 
thousand men, recovered several places from the parlia- 
ment, and threatened Dublin with a siege ; and the young 
king entertained thoughts of visiting that kingdom. 

Cromwell aspired to a situation where so much glory 
might be won, and so much authority acquired ; and, by 
his usual cunning, he procured from the council of state 
the appointment of commander in chief in that island. 
Many disorders, however, in England, and particularly in 
the army, were necessary to be composed, before he set 
out ; but with his usual felicity, he settled aifairs suffi- 
ciently to allow him to undertake the expedition. 

On his arrival at Dublin, he attacked and defeated the 
army of Ormond, whose military character in this action 
received some stain. He then hastened to Tredah, which 
was well fortified, and garrisoned with three thousand 
men ; and having made a breach, he ordered a general 
assault. The town was taken sword in hand ; and orders 
being issued to give no quarter, a cruel slaughter was made 
of the garrison. One person alone escaped, to be the 
messenger of the universal havoc and destruction, 

Cromwell pretended to retaliate, by this severe execu- 
tion, the cruelty of the Irish massacre ; and though he well 
knew that nearly the whole garrison were English, his 
barbarous policy had certainly the desired effect. Every 
town before which he presented himself, now opened its 
gates without offering any resistance ; and the English 
had no other difficulties to encounter, than what arose from 
fatigue and the advanced season. Fluxes and contagious 
distempers destroyed great numbers of them ; but the 
English garrisons o.f Cork, Kinsale, and other important 
places, deserted to him. 

This desertion of the English put an end to Ormond's 
authority ; and leaving the island, he delegated his power 



320 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

to Clanricarde, who found affairs too desperate to admit 
any remedy. Above forty thousand Irish passed into fo- 
reign service ; and in the space of nine months, Cromwell 
had almost entirely subdued Ireland. 

In the mean time, Charles being informed that 
tU^A he had been proclaimed king by the Scottish par- 
liament, was at length persuaded, though reluc- 
tantly, to submit to the severe conditions annexed to his 
receival of the crown. To comply with these, he was 
chiefly induced by the account brought him of the fate of 
Montrose, who, with all the circumstances of rage and 
contumely, had been put to death by his zealous country- 
men. The sentence pronounced against Montrose, was, 
that after being hanged, his head should be cut off, and 
affixed to the prison, and that his legs and arms should be 
stuck up on the four chief towns in the kingdom. He told 
the clergy, who insulted over his fallen fortunes, that they 
were a miserably deluded and deluding people. *' For 
my part," added he, " I am much prouder to have my 
head affixed to the place where it is sentenced to stand, 
than to have my picture hung in the king^s bed-chamber. 
So far from being sorry, that my quarters are to be sent 
to four cities of the kingdom, 1 wish that I had limbs enow 
to be dispersed into all the cities of Christendom, there to 
remain as testimonies in favour of the cause for which I 
suffer." This sentiment, the same evening, he threw into 
verse ; and the poem still remains, a monument of his he- 
roic spirit, and no despicable proof of his poetic genius. 
With the same constancy he endured the last act of th^ 
executioner ; and thus perished, in the thirty-eighth year 
of his age, the gallant marquis of Montrose. 

Charles, in consequence of his agi*eement to take the 
covenant, and to submit to other hard conditions, landed 
in Scotland ; but soon found himself considered as a mere 
pageant of state, and that the few remains of royalty which 
hepossessed, served only to draw on him the gi-eater in- 
dignities. As his facility in yielding to every demand 
gave some reason to doubt his sincerity, it was proposed 
that he should pass through a public humiUation, instead 
of being crowned as he expected. 

The advance of the English army under Cromwell, 
could not appease nor soften the animosities among the 
parties in Scotland. As soon as the English parliament 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 321 

found that the treaty between Charles and the Scots was 
likely to lead to an accommodation, they prepared for war. 
The command in Ireland was left to Ireton ; and Crom- 
well being declared captain-general of all the forces in 
England, entered Scotland with an army of sixteen thou- 
sand men. 

The command of the Scottish army was given to Leslie, 
who entrenched himself between Edinburgh and Leith, 
and avoided a battle, which Cromwell tried every expe- 
dient to bring on. The latter was at length reduced to 
such extremities, that he had even embraced the resolution 
of sending all his foot and artillery to England by sea, 
and of breaking through, at all hazards, with his cavalry ; 
but the madness of the Scottish ecclesiastics preserved him 
from this dishonour. 

These enthusiasts had not only enjoined Charles to with- 
draw from the army, but they had purged it of four thou- 
sand malignants, as they were called, though reckoned the 
best soldiers in the nation ; and on the faith of visions, 
forced their general, in spite of his remonstrances, to de- 
scend from an advantageous station upon the heights of 
Lamermure, near Dunbar, with a view of attacking the 
English in their retreat. Cromwell, seeing the enemy's 
camp in motion, foretold without the help of revelations, 
*' that the Lord had delivered them into his hands." He 
gave orders for an immediate attack ; and such was the 
effect of discipline, that the Scots, though double in num- 
ber, were soon put to flight, and pursued with great slaugh- 
ter. About three thousand were slain, and nine thousand 
taken prisoners ; and Cromwell following up his advan- 
tage, took possession of Edinburgh and Leith. The rem- 
nant of the Scottish army fled to Stirling. The defeat of 
the Scots was regarded by Charles as a fortunate event, as 
the vanquished were now obliged to allow him more autho- 
rity. Still, however, the protesters kept aloof from the 
malignants. 

Charles encamped at Torwood, with the town of Stir- 
ling behind him, and cautiously adhered to defen- 
sive measures ; but Cromwell, passing over the f J:.iV 
frith into Fife, posted himself in his rear, and ren- 
dered it impossible forthe king to keep his station. Charles, 
reduced to despair, embraced a resolution worthy of a 
young prince contending for empire. The road to Bng 



322 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

land being open, where he hoped to be joined by numeroua 
friends, he persuaded the generals to march thither ; and 
with one consent the army, to the number of fourteen 
thousand men, rose from their camp, and advanced by 
rapid marches towards the south. 

Cromwell, leaving Monk with seven thousand men to 
complete the reduction of Scotland, followed the king 
with all possible expedition. Charles found himself dis- 
appointed in his expectations of increasing his army : the 
Scots fell off in great numbers ; the English presbyterians 
and the royalists were unprepared to join him ; and when 
he arrived at Worcester, his forces were not more ijume- 
rous than when he rose from his camp at Torwood. 

Such is the influence of established government, that the 
commonwealth, though very unpopular, had sufficint in- 
fluence to raise the militia of the counties ; and these, uni- 
ted with the regular forces, enabled Cromwell to fall upon 
the king at Worcester with an army of thirty thousand men. 
The streets of that city vrere strewed with the dead. 
Hamilton, a nobleman of braveiy and honour, was mor- 
tally wounded ; Massey was wounded and taken prisoner ; 
and the king himself, having given many proofs of per- 
sonal valour, was obliged to fly. The whole Scottish army 
was either killed or taken prisoners. 

By the earl of Derby's directions, Charles went to Bos- 
cobel, a lone house on the borders of Staffbrdshire, inha- 
bited by one Penderell, a farmer, who, with his four bro- 
thers, served him with unshaken fidelity. Having clothed 
the king in a garb like their own, they led him into a 
neighbouring wood, and pretended to employ themselves 
in cutting fas:gots. For better concealment, he mounted 
an oak, where, hid among the leaves, he saw several sol- 
diers pass by, who expressed in his hearing their earnest 
wishes of finding him. At length, after escaping fre- 
quent dangers of detection, the king embarked on board a 
vessel at Shoreham, in Sussex, and arrived safely at Fes- 
camp in Normandy, after a concealment of one and forty 
days. No less than forty men and women had at different 
tinies been privy to his concealment, yet all of them proved 
faithful to fheir trust. 

The battle of Worcester aflbrded Cromwell what he call- 
ed his ** crowning mercy ;" and he now discovered to his* 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 323 

intimate friends his aspiring views. The unpopularity of 
the parliament aided the ambition of this enterprising man, 
and paved the way to his exaltation. Never, however, had 
the power of this country appeared so formidable to neigh- 
bouring nations, as at this time. Blake had raised the na 
val gloiy of England to a greater height than it had at- 
tained at any former period. In America, the Bermudas, 
Antigua, Virginia, and Barbadoes, were reduced ; Jersey, 
Guernsey, Scilly, and the Isle of Man, were brought under 
subjection to the republic ; and all the British dominions 
submitting, parliament turned its views to foreign enter- 
prises; 

The Dutch were the first that felt the weight of their 
arms. The parliament passed the famous navigation act. 
Letters of reprisal were granted to several merchants, who 
complained of injuries which they had received from the 
states ; and above eighty Dutch ships fell into their hands, 
and were made prizes. The cruelties committed on the 
English at Amboyna, which had been suffered to sleep in 
oblivion for thirty years, were also urged as a ground for 
hostile aggression. 

That they might not be unprepared for the war with 
which they were menaced, the States equipped a 
fleet of one hundred and fifty sail; and gave the i^ro 
command of a squadron of forty-two ships to Van 
Tromp, an admiral of great talents, to protect the Dutch 
navigation agamst the privateers of England. In the road 
of Dover, he met with Blake, who commanded an Enghsh 
fleet much mferior in number. Who was the aggressor in 
the action which ensued, it is not easy to determine ; but 
the Dutch were defe.'ited with the loss of one ship sunk, 
and another taken. 

The parliament gladly seized this opportunity of com- 
mencing the war in form. Several actions now took place 
with various success. At length, Tromp, seconded by De 
Ruyter, met near the Goodwin Sands with Blake, who, 
though his fleet was inferior to that of the Dutch, declined 
not the combat. Both sides fought wit*^ the greatest bra- 
very ; but the advantage remained with the Dutch ; and 
after this vietcry, Tromp, in a bravado, fixed a broom 
to his mast-head, as if resolved to sweep the seas of the 
English. 

Great preparations were made in England to wipe off 



324 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

this disgrace ; and a fleet of eighty sail was fitted 
tfiS ^""' commanded by Blake, and under him by Dean 
*" and Monk. As the Enghsh lay off Portland, they 
descried a Dutch fleet of seventy-six vessels, sailing up the 
channel, with three hundred merchantmen, under the com- 
mand of Tromp and De Ruyter. A most furious battle 
commenced, and continued for three days, with the ut 
most rage and obstinacy ; and Blake, who was victor, 
could scarcely be said to have gained more honour than 
the vanquished. Tromp made a skilful retreat, and after 
losing eleven ships of war, and thirty merchantmen, reach- 
ed the coast of Holland. 

This defeat, together with the loss which their trade 
sustained by the war, inclined the States to peace ; but 
parliament did not receive their overtures in a favourable 
manner ; and they rejoiced at thf dissolution of that as- 
sembly by Cromwell, as an event likely to render their 
affairs more prosperous. 

Cromwell, sensible that parliament entertained a jea- 
lousy of his power, which they wished to restrain, deter- 
mined to anticipate their designs. A council of officers 
presented a remonstrance, complaining of the an'ears due 
to the army, and demanding that a new parliament should 
be summoned. To this the parliament made a sharp re- 
ply ; and Cromwell in a rage hastened to the house, at- 
tended by three hundred soldiers, some of whom he placed 
at the door, some in the lobby, and some on the stairs. 
He reproached the parliament for their tyranny, ambition, 
and oppression ; and commanding the soldiers to clear the 
hall, he himself went out the last, and ordering the doors 
to be locked, departed to his lodgings at Whitehall. 

Oliver Cromwell, who had by this violent measure mo- 
nopolized the whole civil and military power in the king- 
dom, was born at Huntingdon, of a good family, thoua^h 
their estate was small. In the early part of his life, he 
was extremely dissolute and dissipated ; but he was sud- 
denly seized with the spirit of reformation, and entered 
into all the zeal and rigour of the puritans. His affairs 
being embarrassed, he took a farm at St. Ive?, and applied 
himself to agriculture ; but this expedient involved him in 
greater difficulties. The length of his prayers, together 
with the general abstraction of his mind, prevented him 
from paying due attention to his farm ; and urged by his 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 325 

wants, and the religious principles he had imbibed, he had 
made a party with Hampden, his near kinsman, to trans- 
port himself to New-England, but was prevented by an 
order of council. From accident and inUigue, he was 
chosen member for the town of Cambridge in the long 
parliament ; but though highly gifted by nature, he was 
no orator; and if he had not lived in times of turbulence 
and disorder, it is probable that he would never have risen 
to eminence and distinction. ^ 

The indignation manifested by the people, on the usur- 
pation of Cromwell, was less violent than might have been 
expected. Harassed with wars and factions, men were 
glad to see any prospect of peace ; and they considered it 
less ignominious to submit to a person of talents and abili- 
ties, than to a few enthusiastic hypocrites, who, under the 
name of a republic, had reduced them to a cruel subjection. 

By the advice of his council of officers, Cromwell sent 
summons to one hundred and twenty-eight persons, of dif- 
ferent towns and counties of England, to five of Scotland, 
and to six of Ireland. These men, who were generally 
low mechanics, supported by Cromwell, voted themselves 
a parliament; and from one of the most noted, a leather- 
seller in London, whose name was Praise-God Barebone, 
they obtained the ridiculous appellation of Barebone's 
parliament. Cromwell, liowever, soon bocime dissatisfied 
with this assembly of fanatics, who, he t^pected, would 
have been subsei-vient to him, but who began to insist on 
their divine commission, and to oppose his views. In the 
act of drawing up a protest against their dissolution, they 
were interrupted by colonel White, with a party of sol- 
diers. White asked them what they did there? " We are 
seeking the Lord," said they. "Then you may go else- 
where," replied he, " for to my knowledge, he has not 
been here tliese many years." 

This shadow of a parliament being dissolved, the coun- 
cil of officers now proposed, that the supreme authority 
should be vested in a single person, who should be styled 
the PROTECTOR ; and a new instrument of government be- 
ing prepared, Cromwell was declared protector^ and instal- 
led with great solemnity in that high office. By the plan 
of this new legislature, a council was appointed, which was 
not to exceed twenty-one, nor be fewer than thirteen per- 
sons. The protector, however, was to possess all the 
28 



i^'Z6 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

executive power ; but the advice of the council was to be 
itaken on every important occasion. A parliament was to 
be summoned every three years, and allowed to sit five 
months, without adjournment, prorogation, or dissohition. 
The bills which they passed were to be presented to the 
protector for his assent ; but if within twenty days that as 
sent was not obtained, they were to become laws by the 
authority of parliament alone. A standing army was es- 
tablished, and funds were assigned for its support. During 
the intervals of parliament, the protector and council had 
the power of enacting laws, which were to be valid till the 
next meeting ^f the legislative body. The protector was 
to enjoy his office during life ; and, on his death, the coun- 
cil was t6 fill up the vacancy. The council of state, 
named by the instrument, were men entirely devoted to 
Cromwell, and not likely ever to combine against him. 

Whatever may be the defects and distractions in this 
system of civil polity, the military force of England was 
exerted with vigour, conduct, and unanimity. The Eng- 
lish fleet, commanded by Monk and Dean, after an en- 
gagement of two days, defeated the Dutch under Tromp ; 
and in another engagement, when Blake commanded, 
Tromp was shot through the heart, and this decided the 
action. The Dutch regarded less the loss of thirty ships 
which were sunk and taken, than the catastrophe of their 

brave admiral. At length, however, a defensive 
^'nr4 league was contracted between the two republics, 

on terms very honourable and advantageous to 
England ; and Cromwell, as protector, signed the treaty 
of pacification. 

Cromwell, however, had occasion to observe the preju- 
dices entertained against his government, by the disposi- 
tion of the parliament which he had summoned. The 
manner in which he had conducted the elections had been 
favourable to liberty. The small boroughs, as being most 
exposed to influence and corruption, had been disfranchi- 
sed ; and of four hundred members who represented Eng- 
land, two hundred and seventy were chosen by the coun- 
ties. These measures, however, failed to procure him the 
confidence of the people ; and the first business on which 
the parliament entered, was to discuss the pretended in- 
strument of government, and the authority which Crom- 
well had assumed over the nation. Cromwell obliged the 



THE COMMONWEALTH. "327 

members to sign a recognition of his authority, and an en- 
gagement not to propose or cor sent to any alteration in* 
the government, as settled in a single person and a par- 
liament ; but, finding that conspiracies had been entered 
into between; tHe members and some malcontent officers, 
he hastened to dissolve this dangerous assembly. 

After this, the protector exerted himself against the ad- 
herents of Charles, who had appointed a day of 
general rising throughout England; and in order ^'r^e-r 
to draw off the attention of the nation from himself, 
he extended his enterprises to every part of Europe. He 
compelled the French to comply with every proposal 
which he thought fit to make, and to submit to the great- 
est indignities. 

The extensive but feeble empire of Spain in the West 
Indies, excited the ambition of the protector ; and, in or- 
der to humble that power, he equipped two squadrons ; 
one under Blake entered the Mediterranean, and spread 
terror every where. To the other, under Pen and Vena- 
bles, Jamaica surrendered without a blow ; and that island 
has ever since remained in the hands of the English, the 
chief acquisition which they owe to the enterprising spirit 
of Cromwell. 

Blake, being informed that a Spanish fleet of sixteen 
ships had taken shelter in the Canaries, sailed thither, and 
found them in the bay of Santa Cruz. This bay was 
strongly fortified ; but nothing could daunt the spirit of 
Blake. In spite of the Spanish forts and batteries, the 
English admiral steered into the bay ; and, after a resist- 
ance of four hours, the enemy abandoned their ships, 
which were set on fire and consumed. 

This was the last and greatest action of that gallant offi- 
cer. Being almost worn out with a dropsy and scurvy, 
he hastened home, that he might die in his native country ; 
but he expired as he came within sight of land. Never 
was a man more sincerely respected, even by those of op- 
posite principles. He was an inflexible republican, and 
the late changes were thought to be no way grateful to 
him ; but he remarked to the seamen, " It is still our duty 
to fight for our country, into whose hands soever the go- 
vernment may fall." 

Tl e conduct of the protector in foreign affairs, though 
often rash, was full of vigour. The great mind of Crom- 



328 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

well was intent on spreading the fame of the English na 
tion ; and it was his boast, that he would render the name 
of an Englishman as much feared and revered as ever was 
that of a Roman. In his civil and domestic administra- 
tion, he paid great regard both to justice and clemency. 
All the chief offices in the courts of judicature were filled 
with men of integrity ; and amidst the virulence of faction, 
the decrees of the judges were unwarped by partiality. 

Cromwell now judging that he had sufficiently establish- 
ed his authority, summoned another parliament ; but, 
though he had used every art to influence the elections, he 
soon found that it was necessary to employ the most vio- 
lent measures to procure an ascendancy in the house. He 
placed guards at the door, who permitted only such to en- 
ter as produced a warrant from the council. The parlia- 
ment voted a renunciation of all titles in Charles Stuarc, 
or any of his family ; and colonel Jephson, in order to 
sound the inclinations of the house, ventured to move, 
that they should bestow the crown on Cromwell. When 
the protector afterwards affected to ask what could induce 
him to make such a motion : " As long," said Jephson, 
" as I have the honour to sit in parliament, I must follow 
the dictates of my own conscience, whatever offence I may 
be so unfortunate as to give you." " Get thee gone," said 
Cromwell, giving him a gentle blow on the shoulder, " get 
thee gone for a mad fellow as thou art." 

At length, a motion in form was made by alderman 
Pack, one of the city members, for investing Cromwell 
with the royal dignity. The chief opposition came from 
the usual adherents of the protector, the general officers, 
particularly Lambert, who had long entertained hopes of 
succeeding him. However, the bill was carried by a con- 
siderable majority ; and a committee was appointed to 
reason with Cromwell, and to overcome the scru- 
■^%fl^ pies which he pretended against such a liberal of- 
fer. The conference lasted several days ; but the 
opposition which Cromwell dreaded was not that which 
came from I^ambert and his adherents; it was that which 
he met with in his own family, and from men the most 
devoted to his interests. Fleetwood had married his 
daughter, and Desborow his sister ; yet these men told 
him, that if he accepted of the crown, they would instantly 
throw up their commissions, and render it impossible foi 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 329 

tliem to serve him. In short, it is said that a general mu- 
tiny of the army was justly dreaded, if this ambitious pro- 
ject had been carried into execution ; and therefore Crom- 
well, after long doubt and perplexity, was at last obliged 
to refuse the crown. The parliament, however, gave him 
the power of nominating his successor, and assigned him 
a perpetual revenue for the payment of the fleet and army, 
and the support of the civil government. 

The parliament was again assembled, and the 
protector endeavoured to maintain the appearance i^j-q 
of a civil magistrate, by placing no guards at the 
door of either house ; but he soon found how incompatible 
liberty is with a military usurpation. The commons as- 
sumed the power of re-admitting those members whom the 
council had formerly excluded ; and an incontestible ma- 
jority declared themselves against the protector. Dread- 
ing combinations between the members and the malcon- 
tents in the army, Cromwell determined to dissolve the 
parliament without delay ; and when urged by Fleetwood 
and others of his friends not to precipitate himself into so 
rash a measure, he swore by the living God that they should 
not sit a moment longer. 

These distractions at home, however, did not render the 
protector inattentive to foreign affairs. The Spaniards 
were defeated at Dunes by the combined armies of France 
and England ; and Dunkirk being soon after surrendered, 
was delivered to Cromwell. He committed the govern- 
ment of that important place to Lockhart, who had mar- 
ried his niece, and was his ambassador at the court of 
France. 

These successes abroad were more than counterbalan- 
ced by his inquietudes at home. The royalists and pres- 
byterians entered into a conspiracy, which being disco- 
vered, numbers were thrown into prison, and sir Henry 
Slingsby and Dr. Huett were condemned to be beheaded. 
The army was ripe for a mutiny ; and Fleetwood and his 
wife, who had adopted republican principles, began to es- 
trange themselves from Cromwell. His other daughters 
were no less prejudiced in favour of the royal cause ; and 
the death of Mrs. Claypole, his peculiar favourite, destroy- 
ed all his enjoyments. 

All composure of mind seemed now for ever fled from 
the protector. He saw nothing around him but treache- 
28* 



330 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

rous friends or enraged enemies ; and death, which he had 
so often braved in the field, haunted him in every scen^ of 
business or repose. Every action betrayed the terrors 
under vdiich he laboured. He never moved a step with- 
out guards ; he wore armour under his clothes ; and he 
seldom slept above three nights together in the same 
chamber. 

The contagion of his mind began to affect his body. 
He was seized with a slow fever, which changed into a ter- 
tian ague. Dangerous symptoms soon made their appear- 
ance. Casting his eyes towards that future existence, 
which, though once familiar to him, had been considerably 
obliterated by the hurry of business, Cromwell asked Good- 
win, one of his preachers, if it were true that the elect 
could never fall or suffer final reprobation? "Nothing 
more certain," replied the preacher. " Then I am safe,'* 
said the protector, " for I am sure that I was once in a 
state of grace." 

He died on the third of September, a day which he had 
always considered as propitious to him, in the fifty-ninth 
year of his age. A violent tempest which immediately 
succeeded his death, seiTed as a subject of discourse to the 
vulgar; and his partisans, as well as his enemies, endea- 
voured, by forced inferences, to interpret this event as a 
confirmation of their particular prejudices. 

The private conduct of Cromwell, as a son, a husband, 
A father, and a friend, merits praise rather than censure ; 
and, upon the whole, his character was a compound of all 
the virtues and all the vices which spring from violent am 
bition and wild fanaticism. 

Cromwell was surrounded with so many difficulties, that 
it was thought he could not much longer have extended 
his usurped administration ; but when that powerful hand 
was removed, which conducted the government, eveiy one 
expected a sudden dissolution of the baseless fabric 
Richard, his son, possessed no talents for government, and 
only the virtuiss of private life ; yet the council recognized 
his succession. His brother Henry, who governed Ireland 
with popularity, insured him the obedience of that king- 
dom; and Monk, who was much attached to the family 
of Cromwell, proclaimed the new protector in Scotland, 
Above ninety addresfetb from the counties and most con 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 331 

siderable corporations congratulated Richard on his 
accession; and a parliament being- called, all the ,^_q* 
commons at first, without hesitation,, signed an en- 
gagement not to alter the present government. 

But there was another quarter from which greater dan 
gers were justly apprehended. The most considerable of- 
ficers of the army, with Fleetwood and Lambert at their 
head, were entering into cabals against Richard. The 
young protector, having neither resolution nor penetration, 
was prevailed on to give his consent for calling a general 
council of officers, who were no sooner assembled, than 
they voted a remonstrance, in which they lamented that the 
good old cause^ as they termed it, was neglected ; and they 
proposed, as a remedy, that the whole military power should 
be intrusted to some person, in whom they might all con- 
fide. The protector was justly alarmed at these move- 
ments among the officers ; and some of his partisans offered 
to put an end to these intrigues by the death of Lambert ; 
but Richard declared that he would not purchase power by 
such sanguinary measures. 

The parliament was no less alarmed at these military 
cabals, and passed a vote, that there should be no general 
council of officers, withovit the protector's consent. This 
brought matters to a crisis. The officers hastened to 
Richard, and demanded the dissolution of the parliament. 
The protector wanted the resolution to deny, and possess- 
ed little ability to resist this demand; and he soon after 
signed his own resignation in form. Henry, the deputy of 
Ireland, was endowed with the same moderate disposition 
as his brother; and though his popularity and influence in 
that country were very considerable, he quietly resigned 
his authority and returned to England. 

Thus fell, at once, the protectorate house of Cromwell ; 
but, by a rare fortune, it suffered no molestation. Richard 
continued to possess an estate, which he had burdened with 
a debt contracted for the interment of his father. After 
the restoration, though unmolested, he travelled for some 
years, and then returning to England, lived to an extreme 
old age. He was beloved for his social virtues, and hap- 
pier in tranquility and retirement than he could have been 
by the applause of empty fame and the gratifications of the 
most successful ambition. 

The council of officers, in whom the supreme authority 



332 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

was now lodged, agreed to revive the long parliament- 
The members little exceeded seventy in nmnber; but they 
took care to thwart the measures of the officers ; and they 
appointed Fleetwood lieutenant-general only during the 
pleasure of the house. 

The conduct of the parliament gave great disgust to the 
general-officers, who resolved to dissolve an assembly by 
vvhich they were vehemently opposed. Accordingly, Lam- 
bert drew together some troops, and intercepting the mem- 
bers as thev came to the house, sent them home under a 
military escort. 

The officers now found themselves again in possession 
of supreme power ; but to save appearances, they elected 
twenty-three persons, called a committee of safety^ which 
they pretended to invest with sovereign authority. 
Throughout the three kingdoms there prevailed nothing 
but melancholy fears of a bloody massacre to the nobility 
and gentry, and of perpetual servitude to the rest of the 
people. 

But amidst these gloomy prospects, a means was prepa- 
ring for the king to mount in peace the throne of his ances- 
tors. General George Monk, to w^hose prudence and loy- 
alty the restoration of the monarchy is chiefly to be ascri- 
bed, was the second son of an honourable family in De^ 
vonshire, but somewhat gone to decay. He had betaken 
himself, in early youth, to the profession of arms; and by 
his humane disposition he gained the good will of the sol- 
diers, who usually called him honest George MonJc. He 
was remarkable for his moderation ; and, from the can- 
dour of his behaviour, he fell under suspicion of the royal- 
ists, and was suspended for a time. At the seige of Nant- 
wich, he was taken prisoner by Fairfax, and sent to the 
tower, where he endured, about two years, all the rigours 
of poverty and confinement ; and it was not till after the 
royalists were totally subdued that he recovered his liberty. 

Monk, however distressed, had always refused the most 
inviting offers from the parliament ; but Cromwell, sensi- 
ble of his merit, prevailed on him to engage in the wars 
against the Irish, who were considered as rebels both by 
the king and parliament. He afterwards fought in Scot- 
land, and on the reduction of that kingdom, was left with 
the supreme command. In that capacity, he gave satis- 
faction both to the people and the soldiery ; and foreseeing 



THE COMMONWEALTH. 333 

that the good will of the army might eventually be of great 
service to him, he cultivated their friendship with assiduity 
and success. 

Hearing that Lambert was advancing northward, Monk 
sent commissioners to treat with the committee of safety ; 
but his chief aim was to gain time, and relax the prepara- 
tions of his enemies. In the mean time, the nation had 
fallen into anarchy. While Lambert's forces were assem- 
bling at Newcastle, Hazelrig and Morley took possession 
of Portsmouth for the parliament; and. admiral Lawson, 
entering the river Thames, declared on the same side. 
The city of London established a kind of separate govern- 
ment within itself; and Fleetwood was unable to support 
the baseless fabric, which wao every where falling to pieces. 

Monk, who had passed the Tweed, though informed of 
the restoration of parliament, continued to advance at the 
head of about six thousand men. In all the counties 
through which he passed, the gentry flocked to him with 
addresses, requesting that he would assist in restoring the 
nation to peace and tranquility ; but he affected not to fa- 
vour them. 

Monk and his army soon reached the metropolis. 
The common-council of London having refused to i^/^n 
submit to an assessment, and declared that till a 
free parliament imposed taxes they would make no pay- 
ment. Monk was ordered to march into the city, and seize 
twelve persons the most obnoxious to the parliament. 
With this order he immediately complied, and apprehended 
as many as he could of the proscribed persons ; but soon 
reflecting that by this action he had broke through the cau- 
tious ambiguity which he had hitherto maintained, and ren- 
dered himself the tool of a parliament whose tyranny had 
long been odious to the nation, he wrote a letter to the 
house, requiring them, in the name of the citizens, soldiers, 
and whole commonwealth, to issue writs within a week 
for the filling of their assembly, and to fix the time for 
their own dissolution and the meeting of a new parlia- 
ment. He then marched with his army into the city, and 
requesting the mayor to summon a common council, he 
apologized for his late conduct, and desired that they 
might mutually plight their faith for a strict union be- 
tween the city and army, in every measure which might 
conduce to the settlement of the commonwealth. 



334 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

It would be impossible to describe the^ joy which this 
intelligence conveyed ; and the funeral of the parliament 
was celebrated by the populace with marks of hatred and 
derision. The secluded members were invited by the gen- 
eral to enter the house, and appeared to be the majority. 
Votes were passed favourable to the views of Monk ; and 
writs were issued for the immediate assembling of a new 
parliament. 

.When the parliament met, sir Harbottle Grimstone, a 
gentleman well affected to the king's service, was chosen 
speaker ; and the general having sounded the inclinations 
of the assembly, gave directions to the president of the 
council to inform them, that one sir John Granville, a ser- 
vant of the king, was now at the door with a letter to the 
commons. This intelligence excited the loudest accla- 
mations; Granville was called in ; and, without one dis- 
senting voice, a committee was appointed to prepare an 
answer. 

The king's declaration, which was immediately publish- 
ed, offered a general amnesty, with the exception only of 
such persons as should be made by parliament ; it promi- 
sed liberty of conscience ; and assured the soldiers of all 
their arrears, with a continuance of the same pay. 

The lords, perceiving the spirit by which the kingdom, 
as well as the commons, was animated, hastened to rein- 
state themselves in their ancient authority; and the two 
houses attended, while the king was proclaimed with great 
solemnity in Palace-yard, at Whitehall, and at Temple-bar. 
A committee of lords and commons was despatched to 
invite his majesty to return, and take possession of the 
throne ; and the Idng, embarking at Scheveling, landed at 
Dover, where he was met by Monk, whom he cordially 
embraced. On the 29th of May, which was also his birth- 
day, Charles entered London, amidst the most joyful con- 
gratulations. 



CHAP. VI. 

The reign of Charles II. 

When Charles II. ascended the throne, he was thirty 

years of age. He possessed a vigorous constitu- 

ifififi tion, a fine shape, a manly figure, and a gracefu. 

air ; and though his features were harsh, yet his 



CHARLES II 335 

countenance was lively and engaging. No prince ever 
received a crown with the more cordial attachment of his 
subjecifci ; and the ease and aftability of his mannei*s were 
well calculated to confirm this popularity. 

In the choice of his ministers, the king gave great satis- 
faction to the nation. Sir Edward Hyde, created earl of 
Clarendon, was chancellor and prime-minister ; the duke 
of Ormond, steward of the household ; the earl of South- 
ampton, high-treasurer ; and sir Edward Nicholas, secre- 
tary of state. Admiral Montague, who had carried a fleet 
to receive his majesty, without waiting for the orders of 
parliament, was created earl of Sandwich; and Monk, 
who, without effusion of blood, by his cautious and disin- 
terested conduct, settled the affairs of the three kingdoms, 
and restored his injured sovereign to the vacant throne, 
was created duke of Albemarle. Into the king's council 
were admitted the most eminent men of the nation, with- 
out regard to former distinctions ; the presbyterians, 
equally with the royalists, shared this honour. 

All judicial proceedings, transacted in the name of the 
common weal til, or protector, were ratified by a new law ; 
and the act of indemnity passed both houses, and soon re- 
ceived the royal assent. The regicides, with Vjjiie and 
Lambert, were alone excepted ; and all who had sitten 
in any illegal high court of justice, were declared incapa- 
ble of bearing any office in the state. 

The next business was the settlement of the king's re- 
venue. They granted him one hundred thousand pounds 
a year, in lieu of the tenures of wards and liveries, which 
had long been considered as a grievous burden by the no- 
bility and gentry ; and they voted, that the settled revenue 
of the crown, for all charges, should amount to the annual 
sum of one million two hundred thousand pounds ; but, 
still jealous of liberty, they scarcely assigned sufficient 
funds for two thirds of that sum ; and thus left the care of 
fulfilling their engagements to the future consideration of 
parliament. 

The next object which interested the public, was the 
trial and condemnation of the regicides. Harrison, Scot, 
Carew, Clement, Jones, Scrope, Axtel, Hacker, Coke, and 
Hugh Peters, suffered with the confidence of martyrs. 
The rest of the king's judges were reprieved. 

After the parliament had sitten about two monthi- the 



336 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

king dissolved that assembly in a speech full of the most 
gracious expressions. The army was also disbanded ; and 
no more troops were retained than a few guards and gar- 
risons, about one thousand horse and four thousand foot. 
This, however, was the first appearance of a regular 
standing army, under the monarchy, in this island. 

Clarendon, whose daughter, Ann Hyde, was nOAV mar- 
ried to the duke of York, by his wisdom, his justice, and 
his prudence, equally promoted the interest of the king 
and the people ; but his conduct in the management of 
ecclesiastical affairs has been censured by many. Charles 
having observed that presbyterianism was not a religion 
for a gentleman, it v/as resolved to restore prelacy in Scot- 
land. Sharpe, who had been commissioned by the presby 
terians in Scotland to manage their interests with the king, 
was persuaded to abandon his party, and, as a reward for 
his tergiversation, was created archbishop of St. Andrews. 
The conduct of ecclesiastical affairs was chiefly intrusted 
to him ; and he became extremely obnoxious to his former 
friends. 

In England, the new parliament, laying hold of the pre- 
judices which prevailed among the presby terian sect, in 
order to^ject them from their living?, required that every 
clergyman should be reordained, if he had not before re- 
ceived episcopal ordination ; should declare his as- 
Vf\C^ sent to every thing contained in the Book of Com- 
"" mon Prayer; should take the oath of canonical obe- 
dience ; should abjure the solemn league and covenant ; 
and should renounce the principle of taking arras against 
the king, on any pretence whatsoever. This act, and 
others which passed about the same time, have been the 
best supports of the state, by joining it closely with the 
church. It must, however, be confessed, that by these 
enactments the king's promises of toleration and indul- 
gence to tender consciences was entirely eluded or broken. 
About two thousand of the clergy, in one day, relinquished 
their cures, and sacrificed their interest to their principles. 

Before the parliament rose, the court was employed in 
preparing for the reception of the princess Catherine of 
Portugal, to whom the king was betrothed, and with whom 
he received five hundred thousand pounds, and the two 
fortresses of Tangier in Africa, and Bombay in the Ea&t 
Indies, by way of dowry. This marriage, however, was 



CHARLES It. 337 

far froin proving auspicious, as the queen was never able 
to win the affections of her husband. 

Charles, pressed by pecuniary difficulties, in order to 
raise money, as well as to save expenses, sold Dunkirk to 
France, for four hundred thousand pounds. To this mea* 
sure he w'as advised by Clarendon. The value of this ac- 
quisition was so little understood by the French king, that 
he thought he had made a hard bargain. 

Charles issued a declaration, under pretence of mitiga- 
ting the rigours contained in the act of uniformity ; but the 
foundation of this measure was of a very different nature. 
The king, during his exile, had imbibed strong prejudices 
in favour of the catholic religion ; and though he fluctua- 
ted during his whole reign, between irreligion, which he 
more openly professed, and popery, to which he retain«ed 
a strong propensity, his brother the duke of York had 
entered with zeal into all the principles of that theological 
party, and by his application to business, which Charles 
disliked, had acquired a great ascendancy over him. On 
pretence of easing the protestant dissenters, they agreed 
upon a plan for introducing a general toleration, and giving 
the catholifts the free exercise of their religion, at least in 
private houses. The parliament, however, refused their 
concurrence in this measure ; and, in order to de- 
prive the catholics of all hopes, the two houses V^f-A 
agreed in a remonstrance against them. The king 
insisted no farther at present on this project of indulgence ; 
and he issued a vague proclamation against Jesuits and 
Romish priests. In return for this, the commons voted 
him a supply of four subsidies ; and this was the last time 
that taxes were levied in that manner. 

In proportion as the king found himself established on 
the throne, he began to alienate himself from Clarendon, 
whose character was so little suited to his own. Charles's 
partiality for the catholics was always opposed by this 
minister, who, conscious of integrity and of faithful ser- 
vices, disdained to enter into any connexion with the royal 
mistresses. 

The irregular pleasures of Charles, and the little regard 
he paid to decency in his public mistresses, could not but 
give offence to the nation. It was found that the virtues 
which he possessed were more showy than substantial; that 
his bounty proceeded rather from facility of disposition than 
29 



r 



338 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

generosity ; that while he seemed aiFable to all, his heart 
was little susceptible of friendship ; and that he secretly 
entertained a bad opinion of mankind, no proof that he 
was actuated by better motives. But what was most inju- 
rious to the king's reputation, was the neglect of his own 
and his father's adherents, whom he suffered to remain in 
poverty and distress, aggravated by the cruel disappoint- 
ment of their sanguine hopes, and by seeing favour and 
preferment bestowed on their most inveterate foes. The 
act of indemnity and oblivion was generally denominated^ 
and in many cases too justly, an act of indemnity to the 
king's enemies, and of oblivion to his friends. 

The king having demanded a repeal of the triennial act, 
the parliament abrogated the law, and satisfied themselves 
with a general clause, that parliaments should not be in- 
augurated above three years at most. The commons like- 
wise passed a vote, that the indignities offered to the Eng- 
lish, by the subjects of the United States, were the great- 
est obstructions to all foreign trade. This was the first 
open step towards a war with the Dutch. Charles did not 
confine himself to memorials and remonstrances. Sir 
Robert Holmes was secretly despatched with » squadron 
of twenty-two ships to the coast of Africa, where he ex- 
pelled the Dutch from cape Corse, and seized their settle- 
ments at cape Verd and in the isle of Goree. He then 
sailed to America, where he possessed himself of Nova 
Belgia, since called New- York, wiiich James the First 
had granted by patent to the earl of Stirling, but which 
had never been planted except by the Hollanders. 

When the States complained of these hostile measures, 
the king pretended to be ignorant of Holmes's enterprise ; 
and the Dutch, finding their applications for redress likely 
to be eluded, despatched De Ruyter with a fleet, to reta- 
liate on the English. De Ruyter met with no op- 
tfiri position in Guinea. All the new acquisitions of the 
English, except cape Corse, were recovered from 
them ; and they were also dispossessed of some old set- 
tlements. 

The Dutch, however, tried every expedient before they 
would proceed to extremities; and their measures were at 
that time directed by John De Witt, a minister equally 
eminent for ability and integrity. He caused a navy to be 



CHARLES II. 839 

equipped, surpassing any that had ever before been pre- 
pared in the ports of Holland. 

As soon as the intelligence arrived of De Ruyter's en- 
terprises, Charles declared war against the States. The 
English fleet consisted of one hundred and fourteen 
,J^ * sail, besides fire-ships and ketches, and was com- 
manded by the duke of York, and under him by 
prince Rupert, and the earl of Sandwich. Obdam, the 
Dutch admiral, had nearly an equal force, and on meeting 
he declined not the combat. In the heat of action, when 
engaged in close fight with the duke of York, Obdam's 
ship blew up. This accident disconcerted the Dutch, who 
fled towards their own coast. Tromp alone, son of the 
famous admiral killed in the former war, bravely sustained 
with his squadron the eflbrts of the English, and protected 
the rear of his countrymen. The vanquished had nine- 
teen ships sunk or taken ; the victors lost only one. In 
this action the duke of York behaved with great bravery ; 
the earl of Falmouth, lord Muskerry, and Mr. Boyle 
were killed by one shot, at his side, and covered him with 
their brains and gore. 

The abilities of De Witt were employed in reviving the 
declining courage of his countrymen ; and he soon reme- 
died all the disorders occasioned by the late misfortune. 
The king of France, who was engaged in a defensive alli- 
ance with the States, resolved to support the Dutch in this 
unequal contest. 

The English, however, experienced a more dreadful ca- 
lamity than even that of a war. The plague had broken 
out in London, and carried off ninety thousand persons ; 
and the king^ was obliged to summoji a parliament at 
Oxford. 

The king of France had ordered his admiral, th€ duke 
of Beaufort, to proceed from Toulon, and support his 
allies ; and the French squadron, consisting of above forty 
sail, was now supposed to be entering the channel. The 
Dutch fleet, under the command of De Ruyter, to 
the number of seventy-six sail, was at sea, in order *|^i!c 
to join the French. The duke of Albemarle and 
prince Rupert commanded the English fleet, which did 
not exceed seventy-four sail. Albemarle, who despised 
the enemy too much, despatched prince Rupert with twenty 
ships to oppose the duke of Beaufort ; and with the re 



340 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

mainder, he set sail to give battle to the Dutch. Never 
did a more memorable engagement take place ; vrhetlier 
we consider its long duration, or the desperate courage 
with which it was fought. 

On the first day the wind blew so hard that the English 
could not use their lower tier of guns ; and their sails and 
rigging were injured by the Dutch chain-shot, a new in- 
vention ascribed to De Witt ; but the battle was contested 
till darkness parted the combatants. On the second day, 
during the action, sixteen fresh ships joined the Dutch 
fleet, while the English had no more than twenty-eight in 
a situation for fighting. This obliged Albemarle to re- 
treat towards the English coast, which he did with an un- 
daunted countenance, protesting to the earl of Ossory, 
son to the duke of Ormond, that he would rather blow up 
his ship and perish than strike to the enemy. The Dutch 
had come up with the English, and were about to renew 
the engagement, when the squadron of prince Rupert was 
descried, crowding all their sail to reach the scene of ac- 
tion. Next morning the battle began afresh, and conti- 
nued with great violence till suspended by a mist. The 
English retired first into their own harbours. 

De Ruyter now posted himself at the mouth of the 
Thames ; but the English, under prince Rupert and Al- 
bemarle, were not long in coming to attack him. This 
engagement was again fierce and obstinate, and three Dutch 
admirals fell ; but De Ruyter maintained the combat, and 
kept his station, till darkness put an end to the contest. 
Next day, finding the Dutch fleet scattered, he was obliged 
to submit to a retreat, which yet he conducted with so 
much skill as to render it equally honourable to himself 
as the greatest victory. Full of indignation, however, at 
yielding the superiority to the English, he frequently ex- 
claimed, " my God ! what a wretch I am ! among so many 
thousand bullets, is there not one to put an end to my 
miserable life ?" The Dutch, by the greatest exertions, 
saved themselves in their harbours ; and the English now 
rode incontestible masters of the sea. 

A calamity, however, happened in London, which oc- 
casioned the greatest consternation. A most dreadful fire 
broke out in the city, and spreading in spite of every en- 
deavour to check its destructive progress, consumed about 
four hundred streets and thirteen thousand houses. Du- 



CHARLES II. 341 

ring three days and nights the fire continued to advance : 
and it was at last extinguished only hy the blowing up of 
houses. Popular prejudices ascribed this calamity to the 
catholics ; and though no proof ever appeared to authoriz<3 
such a calumny, it is sanctioned by the inscription on the 
monument, which records the conflagration. 

As the Dutch were every day becoming more formida- 
ble, Charles began to be sensible, that all the ends for which 
the war had been undertaken were likely to prove abor- 
tive. This induced him to make the first advances towards 
an accommodation, and matters were in a state of for- 
wardness, when the king, by imprudently discontinuing his 
preparations, exposed England to a great affront, and even 
to great danger. 

The penetrating mind of De Witt discovered the oppor- 
tunity for retrieving the honour of the States ; and he em- 
braced it. The Dutch fleet, under De Ruyter, appeared 
in the Thames, and bursting the chain which had been 
drawn across the Medway, advanced as far as Upnore 
castle, and burnt several ships. They next sailed to Ports- 
mouth and Plymouth, and insulted Harwich. The whole 
coast was in alarm ; and had the French joined the Dutch 
fleet and invaded England, the most serious consequences 
might have ensued. The signing of the treaty of Breda, 
however, save England from this danger ; and the acqui- 
sition of New-York was the principal advantage which the 
English reaped from a war, in which the national charac- 
ter for bravery had appeared with so much lustre. 

To appease the people for their disappointments, some 
sacrifice was necessary ; and the prejudices of the nation 
pointed out the victim. The sale of Dunkirk, the disgrace 
at Chatham, and the unsuccessful conclusion of the war, 
were all attributed to Clarendon. The king himself, who 
had always revered rather than loved the chancellor, was 
glad to be freed from a minister, who, amidst the dissolute 
manners of the court, maintained an inflexible dignity, and 
would not suffer his master's licentious pleasures to pass 
without reprehension. The memory of his former services 
could not delay his fall ; and the great seal was taken 
from him, and given to sir Orlando Bridgman. 

The duke of York in vain exerted his interest in behalf 
of his father-in-law. The commons voted an impeach- 
ment against him ; and Clarendon, finding that neither his 
29* 



34v2 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

innocence nor bis past services were sufficiei. to prot?ect 
liim, retired into France, where he Hved six yea/s after the 
parhament had decreed his banishment. He employed 
his leisure chiefly in reducing to order the history of the 
civil war, for which he had before collected materials, and 
which is a performance that does honour to his memory. 
The king's councils, which had always been ne- 
1670 ^^^^^^^ ^^^ fluctuating, now became actually crimi- 
nal. Men, in whose honour and integrity the na- 
tion confided, were excluded from any deliberations ; and 
the whole secret of government was intrusted to five per- 
sons, Clifford, Ashley, Buckingham, Arlington, and Lau- 
derdale, called the cabal, a word which the initial letters 
of their names happened to compose. 

The dark counsels of the cabal, though from the first 
they gave anxiety to all men of reflection, were not suffi- 
ciently known but by the event. They inspired the king 
with a jealousy of parliaments, and advised him to recover 
that authority in the nation, which his predecessors, du- 
ring so many ages, had possessed ; and they insinuated to 
Charles, that it would be for his interest to detach him- 
self from the triple alliance, not long before concluded 
between England, Holland and Sweden, and form a close 
intimacy with France. It was, however, by the artifices of 
his sister, the duchess of Orleans, that the king was pre- 
vailed on to relinquish the most settled maxims of honour 
and policy, and to finish his engagements with the French 
monarch, as well for the destruction of Holland, as for a 
subsequent change of religion in England. 

About this time. Blood, a disbanded officer of the pro- 
tector's, who had been attainted for engaging in a conspi- 
racy in Ireland, meditated revenge on the duke of Ormond, 
the lord-lieutenant. He seized the duke in the streets of 
London, but Ormond was saved by his servants. Buck- 
ingham was at first suspected of being the author of this 
attempt ; and the marquis of Ossory coming to court, and 
seeing Buckingham near the king, said to him, " My lord, 
1 know well that you are at the bottom of the late attempt 
upon my father; but, I give you warning, that if by any 
means he oome to a violent end, I shall consider you as 
the assassin, and wherever I meet you, I will pistol you, 
though you stood behind the king's chair ; and I tell you 



CHARLES n. 343 

this in his majesty's presence, that you may be sure I will 
not fail in the performance." 

Soon after, Blood formed the design of carrying off the 
crown and regalia from the tower, and was very near suc- 
ceeding in this enterprise. Being secured, however, and 
examined, he refused to name his accomphces. " The 
fear of death," he said, " shall never force me either to 
deny a guilt or betray a friend." The king was moved 
by an idle curiosity to see a person so remarkable for his 
courage and his crimes. Blood now considered himself 
sure of pardon ; and he told Charles, that he had been en- 
gaged with others to shoot him, but that his heart had been 
checked with the awe of majesty at the moment of execu- 
tion. He added, that his associates had bound themselves 
by the strictest oaths to revenge the death of any one of 
the confederacy. Whether the king was influenced by 
fear or admiration, he pardoned the villain, and granted 
him an estate of five hundred pounds a year in Ireland ; 
while old Edwards, the keeper of the jewel-office, who 
had been wounded in defending the crown and regalia, 
was forgotten and neglected. 

Under pretence of maintaining the triple league, which 
at that very time he had resolved to break, Charles obtain- 
ed a large supply from the commons. This, however, was 
soon exhausted by debts and expenses ; and, as it seemed 
dangerous to venture on levying money without consent 
of parliament, the king declared that the staff of treasurer 
was ready for any one who could devise the means of sup- 
plying his present necessities. Ashley dropped « hint to 
Clifford, which the latter adopted and carried to the king, 
who granted him the promised reward, and also a peerage, 
for what ought to have brought him to the gallows. This 
expedient was the shutting up of the exchequer, and re- 
taining all the payments which should be made into it.* 

* It may be necessary to observe, that bankers used to carry their 
money to the exchequer, and advance it upon the security of the 
funds, by which they were afterwards reimbursed, when the money 
was levied on the public. The bankers, by this traffic, got eight per 
cent, or more, for sums which had either been assigned to them 
without interest, or which they had borrowed at six per cent, ; pro- 
fits which they dearly paid for, by this egregious breach of public 
faith. The measure was so suddenly taken, that none had warning 
of the danger. A general confusion prevailed in the city, followed 



344 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

This breach of domestic honour was followed by foreign 
transactions of a similar complexion. On the most 
,g^2 f^^^® ^^^^ frivolous pretexts, Charks issued a de- 
claration of war against the Dutch ; and this was 
seconded by another from Louis XIV. To oppose this 
formidable confederacy, De Witt exerted himself to the 
utmost ; but his merits had begotten envy, and the popular 
affection began to display itself in favour of WilUam III. 
prince of Orange, then in the twenty-second year of his 
age, whom De Witt himself had instructed in all the prin- 
ciples of government and sound policy, and who was 
brought forward as his rival. 

The struggle between the two factions retarded every 
measure. However, at length, a raw army of sevent} 
thousand men was raised, and the prince was appointed 
both general and admiral of the commonwealth ; but his 
partisans were still unsatisfied, as long as the perpetual 
edict remained in force, by which he was excluded from 
the stadtholderate. 

Devoted solely to the interests of his country, De Witt 
disdained all party-spirit, and hastened the equipment of 
a fleet, which put to sea under the command of De Ruyter, 
who was strongly attached to him. This armament con- 
sisted of ninety-one ships of war, and forty-four fire-ships ; 
and with these De Ruyter surprised at Solebay the com- 
bined fleets of France and England. The earl of Sand- 
wich had warned the duke of York of his danger, and re- 
ceived only for answer, that there was more of caution 
than of courage in his apprehensions ; but on the appear- 
ance of the enemy, he alone, with his squadron, was pre- 
pared for action. Sandwich commanded the van, and 
rushed into battle with the Dutch. He beat ofl" one ship, 
and sunk another. He also destroyed three fire-ships, 
which endeavoured to grapple with him ; and though his 
own vessel was torn almost in pieces with shot, and nearly 
six hundred out of a thousand men lay dead on the deck, 
he still continued the contest. Another fire-ship, how- 
ever, having laid hold of his vessel, her destruction was 

by the ruin of many. Distress every where took place, with a stag 
nation of commerce, by which the public was universally affected ; 
and men, full of the most dismal apprehensions, were at a loss to 
uccount for such unprecedented and iniquitous councils, by which 
the public credit was destroyed 



CHARLES II. 345 

B'jW inevitable, and he was advised by his captain to re- 
tire ; but he preferred death to the appearance of deseit- 
Ing Ins post. 

During this fierce engagement w^ith Sandwich, De Ruj- 
rer attacked the duke of York, w^ho fought with such fury 
for above two hours, that of thirty -two actions, in whi«h the 
Dutch admiral had been engaged, he declared this was 
the most severe. The battle continued till night, when 
tlie Dutch retired, and were not followed by the English, 
and the loss sustained on both sides was nearly equal. 

Louis advanced with his troops into Holland, and over- 
ran the country almost without opposition. Amsterdam 
alone seemed to retain some courage. The sluices were 
opened, and the neighbouring country laid under water. 
A.11 the pi'ovinces now followed the example, and scrupled 
not, in this extremity, to restore to the sea those fertile 
fields which had formerly been won from it. 

The combined potentates, finding at last some appear- 
ance of opposition, endeavoured to seduce the prince of 
Orange, who, in consequence of the murder of De Witt, 
had obtained the whole ascendancy in public aifairs. They 
offered him the sovereignty of Holland, and the protection 
of England and France, to insure him as well against fo- 
reign invasion, as the insurrection of his own subjects. 
All proposals, however, were generously rejected ; and, 
when Buckingham urged the inevitable destruction that 
hung over the United Provinces, and asked him, whether 
he did not see that the commonwealth was ruined, he re- 
plied, "there is one certain means by which I can be sure 
never to see my country's ruin ; I will die in the last ditch." 

In the mean time, the other nations of Europe regarded 
the subjection of Holland as the forerunner of their own 
slavery. The emperor began to put himself in motion ; 
and Spain sent some forces to the assistance of the States ; 
but the ally on which the Dutch chiefly relied for support, 
was the English parliament, which the king's necessities 
at last obliged him to assemble. The parliament, however, 
granted a supply, but refused to express the smallest ap- 
probation of the vrar ; and they afforded Charles the pros- 
pect of this supply, only that they might be allowed to pro- 
ceed in the redress of grievances. 

The money granted by parliament served to equip a 
fleet, of which prince Rupert was declared admiral ; for 



346 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

the duke of York was set aside hy the test act, which 
passed during the present session. Three different, but 
indecisive actions, were fought at sea ; the last was the 
most obstinate. The victory, however, in this battle, was 
as doubtful as in all the actions fought during the pre- 
sent war. 

The parliament of England being again assembled, dis- 
covered greater symptoms of jealousy than before, and re- 
monstrated against a marriage which the duke of York, 
who had for some time been a widower, was negotiating 
with a catholic princess of the house of Modena. What, 
however, chiefly alarmed the court, was an attack on the 
members of the cabal, to whose pernicious counsels the 
parliament imputed all their grievances. This produced 
a change in the ministry, somewhat in favour of the nation ; 
but the duke having concluded the proposed match, and 
the war with Holland being more unpopular than ever, 
Charles found that he could obtain no more sup- 
tfiTl P^^®^' while the present measures were pursued. 
He resolved, therefore, on a separate peace, which 
was negotiated under the Spanish ambassador, and was 
concluded on terms honourable to England, and to the 
great joy of the people. 

The war, however, still continued between Holland and 
France, and the events to which it gave rise were regarded 
by the English people with extreme anxiety. Parliament 
viewed with much jealousy the measures of government, 
and the king's secret attachments to France. This jea- 
lousy was increased by a bill introduced into the 
^'(*jc house of peers, by the earl of Lindesey, the object 
of which was, to oblige the members of both houses, 
and all who possessed any ofiice, to swear, that it was 
unlawful, on any pretence whatever, to take arms against 
the king, and that they would not at any time endeavour 
any alteration in the established government, eitlier in 
church or state. Great opposition was made to this bill, 
which was debated for seventeen days, and was carried 
only by two voices in the house of preers. In the com- 
mons it was likely to meet with still greater opposition ; 
but a quarrel arising between the two houses, respecting a 
breach of privilege, the king, finding that no business could 
be completed in consequence of this altercation, prorogued 
the parliament. 



ciiAitLEs it. 347 

Al this period, the king was the undisputed ai'biter of 
Europe ; and ^though he was sensible, that so long as the 
war continued he should enjoy no tranquility at home, he 
could not bring himself to impose a peace by openly join- 
ing either party. 

The parliament again assembled, after an adjournment 
of more than a year, and Charles made strong professions 
of future economy, and offered his consent to any 
laws for the farther security of religion and property. , \^1 
At first the commons proceeded with some degree 
of temper, and granted the sum of five hundred and eighty- 
six thousand pounds for building ships ; but hearing of 
the defeat of the prince of Orange by marshal Luxemburgh, 
and of the capture of Valenciennes, Cambray, and St. 
Omer, by Louis, they addressed the king, representing the 
danger to which England was exposed, from the increa- 
sing greatness of France, and praying, that by such alli- 
ances as he should think fit to enter into, he would endea- 
vour to secure both his own dominions and the Spanish 
Netherlands. Charles, considering this application as an 
attack on his measures, replied in general terms, that he 
would use all means for the preservation of Flanders, con- 
sistent with the peace and safety of his kingdoms. This 
answer was regarded as an evasion, or rather a denial ; 
and the commons, instead of granting a supply, which the 
king had demanded, voted an address, wherein they be- 
sought his majesty to enter into a league, offensive and 
defensive, with the States General of the United Provinces, 
against the growth and power of the French king, and for 
the preservation of the Spanish Netherlands, and to make 
such other alliances with the confederates as should ap- 
pear fit and useful to that end. On these conditions they 
promised him effectual supplies ; but Charles pretended 
to consider this address as an encroachment on his prero- 
gative ; and after reproving the commons in severe terms, 
he immediately adjourned both houses. 

Had not the king been privately sold to France, this 
was the critical moment in which he might have preserved 
the balance of power in Europe, and regained the confi- 
dence of his subjects. This opportunity, however, was 
neglected; and the conduct of Charles was afterwards 
justly regarded with jealousy and distrust. But in order 
to allay, in some measure, the violent discontents which 



«^48 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

prevailed in the nation, the king encouraged proposals oi 
marriage from the prince of Orange to the |Jrincess Mary, 
eldest daughter of the duke of York, who had no malt 
issue, and who was coiisequently heir-apparent to. the 
throne, after her father. 

Charles graciously received his nephew, the prince of 
Orange, at Newmarket ; and the latter was introduced to 
the princess, whom he found extremely amiable both in 
her person and manners. In a short time the marriage 
took place, and gave infinite satisfaction to all parties ; but, 
notwithstanding the double tie by which the king was now 
bound to consult the interests of the Sta,tes General, 
nothing could detach him from the French alliance ; and 
he is said to have received from Louis the sum of two mil- 
lions of livrcs as the price of prolonging the adjournment 
of parliament, which, it was feared, vrould have urged the 
necessity of joining the allies in a vigorous prosecution of 
the war. 

At length, after various negotiations, a treaty of general 
peace was signed at Nimeguen, where a congress 
■I'f-jQ had long been held by the ministers of the different 
powers. By this treaty, France secured the pos- 
session of Franchecomte, and of several towns in the Ne- 
therlands. 

A strong spirit of indignation existed among the English 
against their sovereign, who had acted a part entirely sub- 
servient to the common enemy, and by whose supineness 
and irresolution Louis had been enabled to make such im- 
portant acquisitions In Scotland, too, religious differen- 
ces ran high ; conventicles multiplied in the west ; the 
clergy of the established church were insulted ; and the 
covenanters even met in arms at their places of worship. 
To repress the rising spirit of presbyterianism, a new par- 
liament had been assembled at Edinburgh, some years 
before ; and Lauderdale, who had been appointed com- 
missioner, had sufficient influence to get some acts passed 
which were favourable to the prerogative ; but the severity 
of his measures against the covenanters raised up a party 
against him, of which duke Hamilton was the head. 

In fact, both the language and the conduct of Charles 
daily tended to increase the prejudices and suspicions of 
his subjects. Arbitrary power and popery were appre- 
hended as the scope of all his designs ; and while the na- 



CHARLES II. 849 

tion was in this jealous disposition, it is no wonder that 
every report against the catholics should be readily believed. 

One Kirby, a chemist, informed the king, that there was 
a design against his life ; and that two men called Grove 
and Pickering, had engaged to shoot him, and sir George 
Wakeman, the queen's physician, to poison him. This 
intelligence, he said, had been communicated to him by 
doctor Tongue, a restless divine, who, being examined, 
declared to Danby, the treasurer, that the papers which 
contained information of the conspiracy had been thrust 
under his door. 

The king concluded that the whole was an imposture ; 
and the matter would probably have been consigned to 
oblivion, had not the duke of York, on hearing that priests 
and Jesuits, and even his own confessor, had been impli- 
cated in the business, insisted that regular inquiry should 
be made by the council into the pretended conspiracy. 
Rirby and Tongue were sought after, and were found living 
in close intimacy with Titus Oates, who was said to have 
conveyed the first intelligence to Tongue. This man, in 
whose breast was lodged a secret involving the fate of 
kings, was allowed to remain in such necessity, that Rirby 
supplied him with daily bread ; and, as he expected more 
encouragement from the public, than from the king or his 
ministers, he judged it proper, before he was presented to 
the council, to give his evidence before sir Edmundsbury 
Godfrey, an active magistrate. 

The intelligence of Oates tended to this purpose, that 
the pope, having assumed the sovereignty of England and 
Ireland, on account of the heresy of the prince and people, 
had delegated his authority to the Jesuits, who had sup- 
plied, by commissions, all the chief offices, both civil and 
military. 

It would be useless to enter into all the details of this 
pretended plot. Suffice it to observe, that Oates was one 
of the most infamous of mankind ; and that, before the 
council, he betrayed his impostures in such a manner, as 
would have discredited the most consistent story, and the 
most reputable evidence. The plot, however, soon be 
came the source of terror to the people ; and Danby, out 
of opposition to the French interest, encouraged the story ; 
and by his suggestions, one Coleman, who had been se 
30 



350 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

cretaiy to the late duchess of York, and had been impli 
cated in this affair, was ordered to be arrested. 

Among the papers of Coleman were found several pas- 
sages, Avhich contained very free remarks relative to the 
sentiments and principles of the king, and which contri- 
buted to diffuse through the nation a panic on account of 
the popish plot ; and the people, regarding the remarks 
of Coleman as a confirmation of the truth of Oates' story, 
confounded a business which had no relation to it, with 
the originally hatched conspiracy. :■ 

The murder of sir Edmundsbury Godfrey, vt^hich was 
never accounted for, completed the general delusion, and 
rendered the prejudices of the nation absolutely incurable. 
While the nation was in this ferment, the parliament as- 
sembled ;• and the cry of the plot was immediately echoed 
from one house to the other. A solemn fast was voted ; 
and addresses passed for the removal of popish recusants 
from London. The lords Powis, Stafford, Arundel, Pe- 
ters, and Bellasis, were impeached for high treason ; and 
both houses, after hearing the evidence* of Oates, voted, 
" that the lords and commons are of opinion, that there 
hath been, and still is, a damnable and hellish plot, con- 
trived and carried on by the popish recusants, for assas- 
sinating the king, for subverting the government, and for 
rooting out and destroying the -protestant religion." Oates 
was applauded and caressed, and encouraged by a pen- 
sion of 1200 pounds a year. 

Such bounty brought forth new witnesses. William 
Bedloe, a man, if possible, more infamous than Oates, ap- 
peared next on the stage. At first, he gave intelligence 
only of Godfrey's murder, vrhich, he said, had been perpe- 
trated in Somerset-house, where the queen lived, by pa- 
pists, some of whom were servants in her family. Next 
day, when examined before the lords, he gave an ample 
account of the plot ; and he made his narrative agree as 
well as he could with that of Oates, which had been pub- 
lished ; but, in order to heighten the effect, and render 
himself more acceptable, he added other circumstances 
still more dreadful and extraordinaiy. 

Though the king ridiculed the plot, and all who believed 
it, yet he found it necessary to adopt the popular opinion 
before the parliament. A bill had been introduced for a 
new test, in which popery was denominated idolatry ; and 



CHARLES II. 351 

all members w'^o refused this test were to be excluded 
from both houses. The duke of York, in the most pa- 
thetic manner, mo\ed, that an exception might be admit- 
ted in his favour ; and he protested, that whatever his reU- 
gion might be, it t^hould only be a private thing between 
God and his own soul, and never should appear in his 
public conduct. Notwithstanding this appeal, he prevail- 
ed only by two voices. 

The public ferment was increased by the treachery of 
Montague, who. had been ambassador at Paris, and who 
had procured a seat in the house of commons. He laid 
before the house a letter from the treasurer Danby, coun- 
tersigned by the king, in which appeared the most palpa- 
ble proofs of Charles's intrigues with the French court. 
Danby was immediately impeached by the commons, but 
the peers refused to commit him ; and a great contest be- 
ing likely to arise between the two houses, the king thought 
it advisable, first to prorogue, and afterwards to dissolve 
the parliament. 

The want of i^oney, however, compelled Charles 
to summon a new parliament ; but being soon , ^-,q 
alarmed at their refractory disposition, in order to 
appease his people and the parliament, he desired the duke 
of York to withdraw beyond sea, that no farther suspicion 
of popish councils might remain. The duke readily com- 
plied ; but first required an order for that purpose from the 
king, lest his absenting himself should be considered as a 
proof of fear or guilt ; and he also desired that his brother 
would satisfy him, as well as the public, by declaring the 
illegitimacy of the duke of Monmouth. 

This nobleman was a natural son of the king's by Lucy 
Walters, and born about ten years before the restoration. 
He possessed all the qualities which could engage the af- 
fections of the people ; and, in proportion as the duke of 
York was the object of hatred, on account of his religion, 
Monmouth rose higher in the public favour. Some even 
flattered him with the hopes of succeeding to the crown ; 
and the story of a contract of marriage between the king and 
his mother was industriously spread abroad, and eagerly 
received by the people. Charles, however, to put an end 
to all intrigues of this kind, as well as to remove the duke 
of York's apprehensions, in full council made a declara- 



352 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

tion of Monmouth's illegitimacy, on which York wilh'ngly 
complied with the king's desire, and retired to Brussels. 

Charles, however, could not obtain the confidence of the 
parliament. The impeachment of Danby was revived, 
and the king, in order to screen his minister, granted him 
a full pardon ; but it was pretended that no pardon of the 
crown could be pleaded in bar of an impeachment by the 
commons ; and so resolute was parliament in support of 
its pretensions, that Danby was committed a close prisoner 
to the tower. 

It being expected that a bill for excluding the duke of 
York from the throne would be brought into parliament, 
Charles projected certain limitations, by which the succes- 
sor, if a papist, would be deprived of the chief branches 
of royalty. These concessions, however, were rejected ; 
and a bill was brought in for the absolute exclusion of the 
duke from the crown of England and Ireland. It was 
therein declared, that the sovereignty of these kingdoms, 
upon the king's death or resignation, should devolve to 
the person next in succession after the duke, and that all 
who supported his title should be punished as rebels and 
traitors. This important bill passed the lower house by a 
majority of seventy-nine. 

Soon after, the standing army, and the king's guards, 
were voted by the commons to be illegal ; and that bul- 
wark of personal and national liberty, the habeas corpus 
act, which provided against arbitrary imprisonment, was 
passed the same session. 

In the mean time, the impeachment of the five popish 
lords, with that of the earl of Danby, was carried on with 
great vigour ; but a dispute arising between the two houses, 
about allowing the bishops to vote on the trial of Danby, 
afforded the king a favourable pretext for dissolving the 
parliament. 

This vigorous measure disappointed the malcontents ; 
but even the recess of parliament afforded no interruption 
to the prosecution of the catholics accused of the plot. 
Whitbread, provincial of th^ Jesuits, Fenvvic, Gavan, Tur- 
ner, and Harcourt, all of the same order, were condemned 
and executed on the most incoherent and doubtful evi- 
dence. Ijanghorne, an eminent la.wver, by whom all the 
concerns of the Jesuits were managed, was also convicted ; 
and the first check which the informers received, was on 



CHARLES n 353 

the trial of sir George Wakemaii, the queen's physician. 
The acquittal of Wakeman was a great mortification to 
the prosecutors of the plot, and fixed an indelible stain on 
Oates, Bedloe, and their abettors. 

The discontents in England excited the attention of the 
Scottish covenanters, who, regarding Sharpe, the primate, 
as dn apostate from their principles, and an unrelenting 
persecutor, dragged him from his coach, and put him t-j 
death. This atrocious action gave rise to a violent perse- 
cution against the covenanters, who, finding themselves 
deeply involved in guilt, made themselves masters of the 
city of Glasgow, dispossessed the established clergy, and 
issued proclamations, declaring that they fought against 
the kmg's supremacy, against popery and prelacy, and 
against a popish successor. 

The king, apprehensive of the consequences of this in- 
surrection, despatched Monmouth into Scotland with a 
small body of English cavalry. That nobleman being 
joined by the Scottish guards, and some regiments of mi- 
litia, marched with great celerity against the enemy, who 
had taken post near Bothwell castle. Their army never 
exceeded eight thousand men ; and, being without officers 
and experience, they were speedily routed, with the loss 
of seven hundred killed, and one thousand two hundred 
taken prisoners. Monmouth treated these with great hu- 
manity, and an act of indemnity was soon after passed. 

Charles falling ill at Windsor, such an afiectionate re- 
gard was shown him, and such consternation seized all 
ranks of men, that, to use an expression of sir William 
Temple's, the king's death was regarded as the end of the 
world. The duke of York had been privately sent for ; 
but, when he arrived, the king was out of danger. The 
journey, however, was attended with important conse 
quences. He prevailed on the king to disgrace Monmouth, 
whose projects were now known and avowed ; and he ob- 
tained leave himself to retire into Scotland, on pretence of 
quieting the apprehensions of the English, but, in reality, 
with a view of securing his interests in that kingdom. 

From the favour and encouragement which the parlia- 
ment had given to informers, the nation had got into a vein 
of credulity. One Dangerfield, a man of the most infa- 
mous character, was the author or denouncer of a new 
plot, called the meal-iah plot, from the place wliere some 
30* 



35'4 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

papers relative to it were found. The bottom of this affair 
it is difficult, and not material, to discover. It only ap- 
pears, that Dangerfield, under pretence of betraying the 
conspiracies of the presbyterians, had been countenanced 
by some catholics of condition, and had even gained ad- 
mission to the duke of York. Which side he originally 
intended to cheat is uncertain ; but finding the nation more 
inclined to believe in a popish than a presbyterian plot, he 
fell in with the prevailing humour. 

The duke of Monmouth returned without leave, and 
making a triumphant procession through many parts of 
the kingdom, increased the present ferment. Great en* 
deavours were used to obtain the king's consent for the 
meeting of parliament. The crown was attacked by tu- 
multuous petitions. Wherever the court party prevailed, 
addresses were framed, expressing the deepest abhorrence 
of popular encroachments. Hence the nation was 
Ififtli clistinguished \i\Xo petitioners and ahliorrers. Be- 
sides these appellations, which were soon forgotten, 
this is the epoch of the epithets Whig and Tory,* which 
have been bandied about for nearly a century and a half, 
with little appropriate meaning, and frequently to the in- 
jury both of individuals and the public. 

After a long interval, the king resolved to assemble the 
parliament ; but all the mollifying expressions which he 
used in addressing that assembly, had no effect on the 
commons, who proceeded in their former career, and 
seemed bent on renewing the bill for excluding the duke 
of York from the succession ; and the friends of Monmouth 
hoped that the exclusion of that prince would advance 
their patron to the throne. In the commons, the bill 
passed by a great majority ; but in the house of peers, 
where the king expected to oppose it with success, the 
court-party prevailed, and it was rejected after a long and 
violent debate. 

The commons discovered much ill humour on this dis- 
appointment, and resumed the impeachment of the catho- 

* The court-party reproached their antagonists with resembling 
the fanatical conventiclers in Scotland, who had obtained the name 
of whisrs ; and the country party found a resemblance between the 
courtiers and the popish banditti in Ireland, to whom the appella- 
tion of tory was affixed. Hence the origin of these two term « of 
reproach. 



CHARLES II» 355 

lie lords; and as viscount Stafford, from his age and in- 
firmities, was least able to defend himself, he became the 
first victim. He protested, that the only treason of which 
he had ever been guilty, had been entei'ing into schemes 
for procuring a toleration to the catholics, at least a miti- 
gation of the penal laws enacted against them. The po- 
pulace, who had exulted at his trial and condemnation, 
were melted into tears at the tender fortitude which he 
displayed on the scaffold. 

This was the last blood that was shed on account of 
the popish plot. The commons, however, still found new 
occasions to exercise their talents against the court ; and 
besides insisting on the exclusion, they proceeded to bring 
in other bills of an alarming nature. The king, seeing no 
hopes of restoring the commons to a better temper, came 
to the resolution of proroguing.them ; but the house having 
got intelligence of his design a short time before it was put 
in execution, in the most tumultuous manner passed some 
extraordinary resolutions, which wei*e indirectly subversive 
of the throne. 

Soon after this session was closed, Charles summoned 
a new parliament, and, in order to prevent those tumults, 
which attended their assembling at Westminster, from the 
vicinity of a populous city, he directed them to meet him 
at Oxford. Against this, Monmouth and fifteen peers 
protested, on the ground that the two houses would be 
there exposed to the swords of the papists and their ad- 
herents. These insinuations inflamed the people still 
more ; the leaders came to parliament, attended not only 
by their servants, but by numerous retainers ; and the as- 
sembly at Oxford resembled more a Polish diet than any 
English parliament. 

The commons consisted nearly of the same members, 
and fell instantly into the same measures, the impeach- 
ment of Danby, the inquiry into the popish plot, and the 
bill of exclusion. So violent were they on this last article, 
that no expedient, however plausible, could be hearkened 
to. One of the king's ministers proposed, that the duke 
should be banished five hundred miles from England, and 
on the king's demise, the next heir should be constituted 
regent with regal power ; yet even this expedient, which 
would have left the duke of York only the bare title of 
king, failed to satisfy the house. Charles, seeing no pro- 



356 HISTORY OF ENGfLANl*. 

bability of a better temper in the commons, without sacri- 
ficing his brother, dissolved the parhament ; and resolved 
to depend on economy and retrenchment for alleviating 
the necessities under which he laboured. 

As the king no longer dreaded the clamours of the 

country party, he peniiitted the duke of York to pay him 

a visit. The duke chose to take his passage by 

lfiR2 ®®^ ' ^^^ ^^^ ^^^^P "^ which he embarked struck on 
a sand-bank, and was lost ; but he escaped, with 
a few of his party, in the barge. It is said, that while 
many persons of rank and quality were drowning, and 
among the rest, Hyde, his brother-in-law, the duke was 
Tcry clamorous to save the dogs and the priests. 

Through the influence of the crown, two sheriffs. North 
and Rich, were cha-jen in the city on account of their 
devotion to the court j but as the contest might be renewed 
every year, a project was formed to make the king master 
at once, not only of the city, but of all the corporations in 
England. A writ of quo warranto* was issued against the 
city, which it was pretended, had forfeited all its privileges, 
on account of some irregularities in its proceedings several 
years before ; and though the cause of the city was ably 
defended against the attorney and solicitor generals, the 
judges decided against it. After sentence had been pro- 
nounced, the citizens petitioned the king, who agreed to 
restore them their charter, but obliged them to submit to 
the following regulations : that no mayor, sheriff, re- 
corder, common-serjeant, town-clerk, or coroner, should 
be admitted to the exercise of his office without his ma- 
jesty's approbation ; that if the king disapproved twice of 
the mayor or sheriffs elected, he may, by commission, ap- 
point those magistrates ; that the mayor and court of alder- 
men may, with his majesty's leave, displace any magis- 
trate ; and that no alderman, in case of a vacancy, shall 
be elected without the consent of the court of aldermen, 
who, if they disapproved twice of the choice, may fill the 
vacancy. 

All the corporations in England, from this precedent, 
saw how ineffectual it would be to contend with the court, 
and therefore, most of them were induced to surrender 

* That is, an inquiry into the validity of its charter. 




4Ml 



Arrest of the Queen of Denmark, 




Lord Russell parting with his family 



CHARLES ii. 357 

their charters into the king's hands. ConsiderahJc 
1 fiS'i s'""^ were exacted for restoring the charters ; and 
all offices of power or profit, by the restrictions 
introduced, were now left at the disposal of the crown. 
Tlie conduct of Charles in these proceedings was a most 
violent infraction of personal and national liberty, and 
sufficiently proves the arbitrary and tyrannical principles 
by which he governed. Every friend to liberty must allow, 
that the nation, whose constitution had been thus violated, 
was justified in employing expedients for recovering the 
security of which it had been so unjustly deprived. 

There was a party, who, even before this last iniquitous 
proceeding, which laid the whole constitution at the mercy 
of the king, meditated plans of resistance to the measures 
of the court. The duke of Monmouth, lord Russel, and 
lord Gray, solicited, not only the capital, but the nobility 
and gentry of several counties, to rise in arms, and oppose 
the succession of the duke. The whole train was ready 
to take fire ; but was prevented by the caution of lord 
Russel, who, in opp.>sition to Shaftesbury, the prime mo- 
ver, induced Monmouth to delay the enterprise. Shaftes- 
bury, enraged at this delay, abandoned all hopes of success, 
and withdrew to Hollailid, where he died soon after, little 
regretted by his friends, or noticed by his enemies. 

At last, a regular project nf insurrection was formed. 
The council consisted of Monmouth, Russel, Essex, How- 
ard, Algernon Sidney, and John Hampden, grandscn to 
the great parliamentary leader. These men entered into 
an agreement with Argyle and the Scottish malcontents, 
who engaged to bring the covenanters into the field. The 
conspirators, however, differed widely in their views. Sid- 
ney and Essex were for a republic ; Monmouth entertain- 
ed hopes of obtaining the crown for himself; and Russel 
and Hampden were attached to the ancient constitution, 
and wished only a redress of grievances, and the exclusion 
of the duke of York. Howard, who was a man of no 
principle, was ready to espouse any party, to which his 
interest might lead him. But, discordant as they seemed 
in their characters and views, they were all united in a 
common hatred of the heir-apparent. 

While these schemes were concertino^ among the lead- 
ers, an inferior order of conspirators held frequent meet- 
ings, and carried on projects quite unknown to Monmouth, 



358 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

and the cabal of six ; and the only persons of this confe- 
deracy, who had access to the leaders of the party, were 
Ferguson, and colonel Rumsey, an old republican officer. 
These persons indulged in the most criminal discourse ; 
and proposed to assassinate Charles at a farm called the 
Rye-house, which lay on the road to Newmarket, whither 
the king commonly went once a year ; but the house in 
which his majesty lived there happening to take fii-e, obli- 
ged him to leave that place sooner than he intended, and 
thus the execution of the design was prevented. 

Among the conspirators was one Keiling, who, being 
under a criminal prosecution, in order to obtain a pardon, 
betrayed his associates to secretary Jenkins. Search being 
made after the conspirators, colonel Rumsey, and West, a 
lawyer, finding the perils to which they were exposed, sur- 
rendered themselves, and turned evidence. Rumsey made 
known the meetings of the leaders; and orders were issued 
for arresting the great men engaged in the conspiracy. 
Monmouth absconded ; Russel was sent to the tower ; Gray 
was arrested, but escaped ; and Hr w^ard, a profligate man, 
being taken, in hopes of pardon and reward, revealed the 
whole plot. Essex, Sidney, and Hampden, were imme- 
diately apprehended ; and some d( the inferior conspira- 
tors being convicted, paid the forfeit of their lives. 

The condemnation of these criminals was preparatory 
to the trial of lord Russel, a nobleman illustrious for his 
virtues, and highly popular, against whom Rumsey, Shep- 
hard, and Howard, appeared. It was proved, that an in- 
surrection had been resolved on, and the surprisal of the 
king's guards taken into consideration by the prisoner ; 
but still, with regard to law, there remained an important 
difficulty. By an act passed soon after the restoration, to 
consult on a rebellion, during Charles's life time, was de- 
clared treason ; but it was required, that the prosecution 
should be commenced within six months after the crime 
had been committed. The facts sworn to by Rumsey and 
Shephard were beyond the six months required by law ; 
and to the other circumstances, Howard was the only evi- 
dence, whereas, by the statute of Edward IH., the crime 
of treason must be proved by two witnesses. 

Russel perceived this irregularity, and desired to have 
the point argued by counsel ; but the chief-justice told 
him, that this favour could not be granted, unless he pre 



CHARLES II. 359 

▼iously confessed the facts ; and the artificial confounding 
of the two species of treason was the principal, though 
not the only hardship, of which this unfortunate nobleman 
had reason to complain on his trial. His veracity would 
not allow him to deny the conspiracy for an insurrection ; 
but he solemnly protested, that he had never entertained 
any design against the life of the king. After a short de- 
liberation, the jury brought him in guilty. 

Applications were made to the king for a pardon ; and 
even money, to a very considerable amount, was offered 
to the duchess of Portsmouth by the earl of Bedford, fa- 
ther to Russel ; but Charles was inexorable. 

Lady Russel, daughter and heir of the earl of South- 
ampton, a woman of the most exalted merit, threw herself 
at the king's feet, and pleaded with many tears the services 
of her father as an atonement for the error of her husband. 
Finding her supplications ineffectual, she summoned up all 
the fortitude of her soul, and even endeavoured, by her ex- 
ample, to strengthen the resolution of her unfortunate lord. 
With a tender and decent composure, they took leave of 
each other on the day of his execution. " The bitterness 
of death is now past," said he, as he turned to her. To the 
last, he maintained the seme dignified composure, the same 
good-humoured equanimity for which he had been always 
distinguished. He was the most popular among his own 
party, and admired for his virtues even by the opposite 
faction ; and his melancholy fate united every heart, sen- 
sible of humanity, in a tender compassion for him. 

Algernon Sidney, the apostle of liberty, was next 
brought to trial. This gallant person, son to the earl of 
Leicester, had been deeply implicated in the civil wars ; 
but he opposed the usurpation of Cromwell with zeal and 
courage ; and, after the restoration, he chose voluntary ba- 
nishment, rather than submit to a government and family 
which he abhorred. At length, he returned to England, 
and applied for the king's pardon, which he obtained. 

Howard was again the only witness against Sidney ; 
but, as the law required two, a strange expedient was 
adopted to supply the deficiency. In searching the pri- 
soner's closets, some discourses on government were 
found, in which he maintained principles, favourable in- 
deed to liberty, but such as the most dutiful subjects have 
been known to embrace, and which, even if they had been 



360 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

published, could not have infringed any positive law. 
These papers, however, were said to be equivalent to a 
second witness ; and the violent and inhuman judge 
JetFeries easily prevailed on a prejudiced jury to give a 
veidict against Sidney. He complained, with great rea- 
son, of the iniquity of the sentence ; and be died glorying 
in the " good old cause," in which from his youth, he said, 
he had enlisted himself. 

Howard was also the sole witness against Hampden, 
who, therefore, was indicted only for a misdemeanor ; and 
sentence being obtained against him, the exorbitant fine 
of forty tliousand pounds was imposed on him. 

On the day that Russel was tried, Essex, a man eminent 
for his virtues and abilities, was found in the tower with 
his throat cut. Whether he committed suicide, or was mur- 
dered by others, has never been clearly ascertained. 

On the detection of this conspiracy, loyal addresses ar- 
rived from all parts of the kingdom ; and, in order to in- 
crease his present popularity, Charles judged it 
irsi proper to give his niece, the lady Anne, in mar- 
riage to prince George, brother to the king of Den- 
mark ; but, though the king had recovered his former 
popularity in the nation, and was «riabled to govern with- 
out a parliament, it is certain he was neither happy nor 
satisfied. The violent temper of his brother gave him ap- 
prehension and uneasiness ; and, in opposing some of the 
duke's hasty counsels, he was heard one day to say, 
*' brother, I am too old to go again on my travels ; you 
may, if you choose it." It was evident, that the king 
meditated some change of measures ; and it was believed, 
that he intended to send the duke of York to Scotland, to 
recal Monmouth, to assemble his parliament, and to dis- 
miss his obnoxious ministers ; but amidst these wise and 
virtuous designs, he was seized with an apoplectic fit, and, 
after languishing a few days, expired in the fifty-fifth year 
of his age, and the twenty-fifth of his reign. Having al- 
ways enjoyed a good constitution, his death begat suspi- 
cion of poison ; but when all circumstances are consider- 
ed, this suspicion appears without foundation. His loss, 
however, was sincerely lamented by his people, as well on 
account of their affection for him, as of their dread of his 
successor. 

During the few days of the king's illness, he showed a 



JAMES n. 961 

total indifference to the devotions and exhortations of the 
clergy of the established church, but received the sacra- 
ment from the hands of catholic priests ; and in his cabi- 
net were found two papers, which contained arguments in 
favour of the Romish communion, and which the duke of 
York had the imprudence immediately to publish. 

Charles, when considered as a companion, appears the 
most amiable and engaging of men ; he had a ready wit, 
was well-bred, and good-natured. When, however, we 
view his public character, he evidently sinks in our esti- 
mation. As a sovereign, his conduct was dangerous to 
his people, and disgraceful to himself. Negligent of the 
interests of the nation, careless of its glory, averse to its 
religion ; jealous of its liberty, lavish of its treasures, and 
sparing only of its blood, he exposed it by its measures 
to the danger of a civil war, and even to the ruin and ig- 
nominy of a foreign conquest. 



CHAP. XVII 

The reign of James II, 

The first act of James's reign was to assemble the privy- 
eouncil, and declare his resolution to maintain the estab- 
iished government in church and state ; but in 
the first exercise of his authority, he showed the ^'f^l 
insincerity of his professions. All the customs^ and 
the greater part of the excise, had been settled by parlia- 
ment on the late king during life, and consequently the 
grant had expired ; but James, without regarding the laws, 
issued a proclamation, ordering payment of the customs 
and excise as before ; and he went also openly, and with 
all the ensigns of dignity, to mass. By this imprudence 
he displayed at once his arbitrary disposition, and the big- 
otry of his principles. 

However little inclined James might be to an English 
parliament, he found it absolutely necessary to summon 
one ; but his speech to that assembly was calculated ra- 
ther to awaken their fears than to work on their aft'ections. 
He required them to settle his revenue, and that during 
his life, as had been done to his brother. " There is, in- 
deed," added he, *' one popular argument against comply- 
ing with my demand. Men may think, that by feeding 
rae, from time to time, with such supplies as they think 
31 



son HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

convenient, they "will better secure frequent meetings of 
parliament ; but as this is the first time I speak to you 
from the tlirone, I must plainly tell you, that such an ex- 
pedient would be very improper to employ with me, and 
that the best way to engage me to meet you often, is al- 
ways to use me well." 

The parliament was thus placed in a veiy critical situa- 
tion, either of opposing James at once, or of complying 
with his wishes ; and the commons voted the same reve- 
nue to his present majesty during life, as had been enjoy- 
ed by the late king. The lords were no less compliant ; 
and they endeavoured to break in pieces the remains of 
the popish plot. Oates, who had been tried and convict- 
ed of perjury, was sentenced to perpetual imprisonment, 
besides being publicly whipped, and five times a year ex- 
posed in the pillory. The impudence of this man still 
supported him, and he made solemn appeals to heaven 
for the truth of his testimony.* 

The conviction of Oates was noticed by the house of 
peers ; and the popish lords Powis, Arundel, Bellasis, and 
Tyrone, together with the earl of Danby, were freed from 
their impeachment ; but the course of parliamentary pro- 
ceedings was interrupted by the news of Monmouth's 
arrival in the west, with three ships from Holland. Par- 
liament immediately passed a bill of attainder against 
Monmouth, and voted, that they would adhere to James 
with their lives and fortunes ; and they granted the king a 
supply of four hundred thousand pounds for suppressing 
the rebellion. 

The unfortunate Monmouth, pursued by the severity of 
James, even in his retirement on the continent, and urged 
by the impatient humour of Argyle, who set out for Scot- 
land in his cause, was driven, contrary to his judgment 
as well as inclination, to make a rash and premature at- 
tempt. Landing at Lyme, in Dorset, with scarcely a hun- 
dred followers, the popularity of his name soon drew to his 
standard above two thousand horse and foot. At Taunton 
he assumed the regal title ; and he was proclaimed king 
at Bridgevvater, Wells, and Frome ; but he allowed the ex- 

*■ On the accession of king William, Oates recovered his liberty, 
anil Iiad a pension of four hundred pounds a year settled on him 



JAMES n. 363 

pectatioiis of the people to languish, without attempting 
any considerable undertaking. 

Hearing that Argyle had been defeated, Monmouth fell 
into despondency ; but his followers showed more courage, 
and seemed determined to adhere to him in every fortune. 
The negligence of Feversham, the royal general, invited 
Monmouth to attack the king's army at Sedgemoor, where, 
after a combat of three hours, the rebels gave way. About 
one thousand five hundred fell in the battle and pursuit; 
and the unhappy Monmouth fled from the field, above 
twenty miles, till his horse sunk under him. He then 
changed clothes with a peasant, in order to conceal him- 
self; but at last, he was found lying in the bottom of a 
ditch, and covered with fern. His body, depressed with 
fatigue and hunger, and his mind, by the memory of past 
misfortunes, and the prospect of future ills, he burst into 
tears when seized by his enemies, and seemed still to in- 
dulge the fond hope and the desire of life. He wrote to 
James in the most submissive terms, conjuring him to spare 
the issue of a brother ; and the king, finding such symp- 
toms of contrition and despondency in the unhappy pri- 
soner, admitted him into his presence, in hopes of extort- 
ing a discovery of his accomplices ; but Monmouth would 
not purchase life, however loved, at the price of so much 
infamy. Finding all efforts vain, he prepared himself for 
death, with a spirit worthy of his rank and character, and 
was attended to the scaffold by the tears of the people, with 
whom he had ever been a favourite. 

This victory, if it had been managed with prudence, 
would have tended to confirm the power and authority of 
the king ; but the cruelty with which it was prosecuted 
by the savage colonel Kirk, and the infamous judge Jef- 
feries, hastened the ruin of James. Besides those who 
were butchered by the military commanders, two hundred 
and fifty-one victims are said to have been executed ; and 
all the rigours of justice, unabated by any appearance of 
clemency, were fully displayed by the barbarous Jefferies. 

In Scotland, the fate of Argyle had been decided be- 
fore that of Monmouth. The parliament of that country 
acknowledged the king's authority to be absolute ; and 
with such a servile train, the patriotic virtues of Argyle 
could stand no chance o-f obtaining a pardon. He was 



364 HISTORY OF ENGLAN©. 

seized, aud carried to Edinburgh, where, after endaring 
many indignities, he was puWicly executed. 

Elated with this tide of short-hved prosperity, James 
began to undervahie the authority of an EngUsh parlia- 
ment ; and in a speech to that assembly, he observed, that 
he had employed many catholic officers, in whose favour 
he had dispensed with the law, which requires the test to 
be taken by every one possessed of any public office ; and 
he also declared, that, having received the benefit of their 
service, he was resolved neither to expose them afterwards 
to disgrace, nor himself to the want of their assistance. 
The commons voted an address to the king against the 
dispensing power ; but this address was ill received by 
James, who returned a haughty reply. At their next 
meeting, the commons proceeded to the considei*ation of 
a supply, and went so far in their submissions as to es- 
tablish funds for paying the sums voted. The king there- 
fore had, in effect, obtained almost a complete victory 
over the lower house, which ceased to be the guardian of 
the liberties and property of the people. 

In the upper house, however, Compton, bishop of Lon- 
don, in his own name and that of his brethren, moved 
that a day should be appointed for taking the king's 
speech into consideration ; and notwithstanding the op- 
position of Jefi*eries,^ the chancellor, the bishop's motion 
prevailed. James was so much irritated, that he proceed- 
ed immediately to prorogue, and finding that he could not 
break the firmness of the leading members,^ he finally dis- 
solved the parliament. 

The open declaration of James, to dispense with the 
tests, had diffiised an universal alarm throughout the na- 
tion, had alienated the church, and even disgusted the ar- 
my. The former horror against popery was revived ; and 
this was further increased by Louis XIV. having, about 
the same time, revoked the edict of Nantes, in consequence 
of which, nearly fifty thousand refugees passed over into 
England ; and, from their representations, all men dread- 
ed the projects which were supposed to be formed by the 
king for abolishing the protestant religion. 

Though James had failed in prevailing on the parlia- 
ment, he was successful in establishing his dispensing 
power* by a verdict of the |udges. Four catholic lords 



JAMES II. 365 

were also brought into the privy-council ; the king 
was openly zealous in making converts ; and men i^o/^ 
plainly saw, that the only means of acquiring his 
majesty's confidence, was the sacrifice of their religion. 
Those who had any regard to decency, any attachment to 
the liberties of their country, or to the protestant faith, 
now withdrew from the ministry, or were dismissed, and 
their places were filled with renegadoes, who squared 
their belief by their interest. 

All judicious persons of the catholic communion easily 
foresaw the consequences of these violent measures ; but 
James was entirely governed by the rash counsels of the 
queen, and of his confessor, father Peters, a Jesuit and 
privy-counsellor. The king issued a proclamation, sus- 
pending all the penal laws in ecclesiastical affairs, and 
granting a general liberty of conscience to all his subjects. 
In Girder to facilitate the reception of this edict of tolera- 
tion, James began to pay court to the dissenters ; 
but his intentions were so obvious, that he found it ^'gq<^ 
impossible to obtain the confidence of the non-con- 
formists ; and if the dissenters had been blinded by his 
professions, the measures pursued in Scotland, and also 
in Ireland, were sufficient to discover the secret. 

James, however, did not long affect to conceal his de- 
signs. He publicly sent the earl of Castlemaine ambassa- 
dor-extraordinary to Rome, in order to express his obei- 
sance to the pope, and to bring about a reconciliation with 
the holy see ; but the pontiff, rightly concluding that a 
scheme conducted with such indiscretion could never suc- 
ceed, treated the ambassador with neglect, and thought it 
sufficient to send a nuncio to England, who was solemnly 
received at Windsor, in opposition to an express act of 
parliament, by which it was made treason to hold any 
correspondence with the pope. 

By virtue of his prerogative, James had suspended the 
penal laws, and dispensed with the test ; and he would 
gladly have obtained the sanction of parliament to these 
acts of power ; but, finding that impossible, he forebore to 
convene that assembly, and proceeded to strengthen the 
catholic party by every expedient. The church and the 
universities had hitherto been shut against the catholics ; 
and though the university of Oxford had lately made a so- 
lemn profession of passive obedience, yet whe^ the king 
31* 



366 HISTORY OF ENGLANir, 

sent a mandate for appointing one Farmer, a convert ro 
popeiy, president of Magdalen college, one of the richest 
foundations in Europe, the fellows chose Dr. Hough, a 
man whose virtue and firmness rendered him not only 
proper for the office but for the times. On inquiry, Far- 
mer was found guilty of the most scandalous vices ; and a 
new mandate was issued in favour of Parker^ lately crea- 
ted bishop of Oxford, a man also of a prostitute character, 
who atoned for his vices by his willingness to embrace the 
catholic religion ; but the society representing that by the 
statutes, Parker could not be chosen^ the president and all 
the fellows y except two who complied, were expelled the 
college ; and Parker was appointed president. 

The next measure of the court rendered the breach be- 
tween the king and the ecclesiastics incurable. James 

had published a second declaration of indulgence, 
1688 ^vhich he ordered to be read in all the churches, 

immediately after divine service. The clergy in 
general detennined to oppose this violence done to their 
consciences ; and Lloyd, bishop of St. Asaph ; Ken, of 
Bath and Wells ; Turner, of Ely ; Lake, of Chichester ; 
White, of Peterborough ; and Trelawney, of Bristol, met 
privately with the primate, and drew up a petition to the 
king, that he would not insist on their reading the declara- 
tion. For this the prelates were committed to the Tower ; 
and the crown lawyers were directed to prosecute them for 
the seditious libel, which it was pretended, they had com- 
posed and uttered. 

The bishops, however, notvrithstanding the machina- 
tions of the court, were acquitted ; and the joy which the 
intelligence of this event diffused throughout the kingdom 
is indescribable. The army encamped on Hounslow-heath 
soon caught the contagion ; and James, who had that day 
reviewed the troops, and was in the general's tent, was 
surprised to hear a general uproar in the camp ; inquiring 
the cause, be was told by Lord Feversham, " it was no- 
thing but the rejoicing of the soldiers for the acquittal of 
the bishops." " Do you call that nothing?" replied he, 
*' but so much the worse for them." Nothing, however, 
could check the mad career of James. He struck out 
two of the judges who had appeared to favour the bishops ; 
and he issued orders to prosecute all those clergymen vrho 
had not read his declaration ; and to tlie honour of the 



JAMES II. 3t)7 

established church be it recorded, that only two hundred 
complied with his edict. 

A few days before the acquittal of the bishops, the queen 
was delivered of a son, to the great joy of the king and all 
zealous cathohcs ; but so violent was the animosity against 
the court, that calumny ascribed to James the design of 
imposing on the world a supposititious child. He was 
baptized by the R»ame of James, and was afterwards known 
by the title of " the pretender." 

The prince of Orange, who had married the princess 
Mary of England, eldest daughter of the king, had main- 
tained a very prudent conduct ; and James strongly soli- 
cited the consent of the prince to the repeal of the penal 
statutes and of the test ; but the latter declared his refusal 
to concur in these measures, unless the same should be 
sanctioned by parliament. This declaration gave courage 
to the protestants, while it excited the indignation of James, 
who prepared to make war on the United States. Many 
persons of consequence and talents, flying from England, 
offered their services to William, and requested his active 
interference. 

The prince, after duly weighing the matter, and finding 
the whigs, the tories, the churchmen, and the non-con- 
formists, forgetting their animosities, all leagued in the 
design of resisting their deluded sovereign, yielded to the 
very respectable and numerous applications that had been 
made to him ; and having secretly augmented the Dutch 
navy, levied troops, and raised considerable sums of mo- 
ney, he waited for a favourable opportunity of embarking 
for England, which regarded him as its sole protector. 

Louis, who had penetrated the designs of the prince, 
conveyed the intelligence to James ; but the king treated 
the information with contempt, and refused the assistance 
which the French monarch offered on this occasion. At 
last, however, when convinced that he might soon expect 
a powerful invasion from Holland, James opened his eyes, 
and found himself on the brink of a frightful precipice. 
He now began to retract those fatal measures which had 
created him so many foreign and domestic enemies ; but 
when intelligence arrived, that a great disaster had befallen 
the Dutch fleet, he recalled, for some time, the concessions 
which he had made. 

Meanwhile, a declaration from the prince of Orange was 



t^68 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

dispersed over the kingdomf^nd met with universal appro- 
bation. All the grievances of the nation were there enu- 
merated ; and to redress these, the prince said, that he in- 
tended to come over into England with an armed force. 

After a prosperous voyage, he landed his army safely 
in Torbay, on the fifth day of November, and, marching 
to Exeter, caused his declaration to be there pub- 
,ggg lished. By degrees, all England was in commo- 
tion ; and every day showed some effect of tha. 
universal combination into which the nation had entered 
against the measures of the king ; but the most dangerous 
symptom was the disaffection of the army, all the officers 
of which seemed disposed to regard only the interests of 
their country and their religion. Lord Cornbuzy carried 
over three regiments to the prince ; and several officers 
informed Feversham^ the general, that they could not in 
conscience draw their swords against the Dutch. Even 
lord Churchill, who had been raised from the rank of a 
page, and owed his whole fortune to the bounty of the 
crown, influenced by principle alone, deserted his master, 
and carried with him the duke of Grafton, natural son to 
the late kino^. 

James, however, received a still more fatal blow in the 
defection of George, Prince of Denmark, his son-in-law, 
and his daughter Anne, who both joined the prince. When 
intelligence of this reached the king, the unfortunate sove- 
reign burst into tears. " God help me," cried he, in the 
f xtremity of his agony, " my own children have forsaken 
me !" His last acts of authority were to issue writs for a 
new parliament, and to send Halifax, Nottingham, and 
Godolphin, as commissioners to treat with the prince of 
Orange. He even hearkened to imprudent counsel, by 
which he was prompted to desert the throne. Alarmed 
by the general disafi*ection, and impelled by his own fears 
and those of others, James precipitately embraced the re- 
solution of escaping into France ; and, having previously 
sent off the queen and the infant prince, he himself dis- 
appeared in the night-time, and hastened to embark and 
follow them. 

By this rash act, the reins of the government were 
thrown up, and the populace became masters ; and rising 
m a tumultuous manner, they destroyed the mass-houses, 
and rifled the places in which the catholics had lodged 



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Judge Jefferies seized by the People. 



JAMES II. 369 

their most valuable effects, ^gjjiteries, the chancellor, who 
had disguised himself, was^Rovered, and treated with 
the greatest severity, in consequence of which he died 
soon after. Feversham no sooner heard of the king's 
flight, than he disba-nded his troops, without either disarm- 
ing or paying them. 

In the mean time, however, James had been seized at 
Feversham, and obliged to return to London, where the 
populace, moved by compassion, or actuated by loyalty, 
received him with shouts and acclamations. During his 
abode at Whitehall, little attention was paid him ; and de- 
siring permission to retire to Rochester, a town near the 
sea coast, his request was immediately granted. He pri- 
vately embarked on board a frigate which ^vaited for him, 
and arrived safely at Ambletouse, in Picardy, whence he 
hasten-ed to St. Germain's. Louis received him with the 
greatest generosity and respect, a circumstance more ho- 
nourable to him than his most splendid victories. 

Thus ended the reign of James ; a prince who possess- 
ed many of the qualities which form a good citizen, but 
whose bigotry and arbitrary principles rendered him odious 
as a king. In domestic life, his conduct was irreproach- 
able ; and even while he was sacrificing every thii>g to the 
advancement of popery, his frugality of the public money 
was remarkable, and his jealousy of the national honour 
commendable ; but his invasion of the rights and liberties 
of the people tarnished every other virtue, and his disre- 
gard to the religion and constitution of his country could 
not be compensated by any other qualities. In principle, 
he was a despot and a bigot ; and his abdication of the 
throne, and consequent exclusion, have proved the happi- 
ness of this kingdom. 

Thus the prince of Orange, with little effusion of blood, 
effected the deliverance of England, and dethroned a king 
possessed of a formidable navy and a numerous army. 
Still a more difficult t£isk remained, to obtain for himself 
that crown which had fallen from the head of his father 
in-law. To claim it by right of conquest would have been 
destructive to the principles of liberty, which he professed 
to establish ; and he wisely resolved to leave the settle- 
ment of this important affair to the guidance and direction 
of the nation. 

In the convention which was assembled, it was evident 



370 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

that the whig part^jl|efly prevailed ; and the com • 
ipeq i^ons sent up a HR to the peers, "that king 
James II. having endeavoured to subvert the con 
stitution of the kingdom, by breaking the original contract 
between the king and the people ; and having, bj the ad- 
vice of Jesuits and other wicked persons, violated the fun- 
damental laws, and withdrawn himself out of the kingdom, 
has abdicated the government, and that the throne is there- 
by vacant." This vote, when carried to the upper house, 
met with great opposition ; and the last clause, which de- 
clared the throne vacant, was omitted ; but the commons 
still insisted on their original vote, and some peers desert- 
ing to the whig interest, the whole was passed, and re- 
ceived the sanction of both houses. 

During these debates, the prince had maintained a re- 
spectful silence ; but, at length, he expressed his senti- 
ments on the present situation of affairs. He observed, 
that some insisted on appointing a regent, and that others 
were desirous of bestowing the crown on the princess Mary 
alone ; that though he pretended not to interfere in their 
deliberation, he thought it incumbent on him to inform 
them, that he wag determined not to be the regent, nor 
would he accept a crown which depended on the life or 
will of another ; and, therefore, if they were inclined to 
either of these two plans of settlement, it would be wholly 
out of his power to give them any further assistance. 

The princess seconded the views of her husband, and 
the princess Anne agreeing to be postponed in the suc- 
cession to the crown, facilitated the public settlement. 
The principal parties being thus agreed, the convention 
passed a bill, settling the crown on the prince and princess 
of Orange, the sole administration to remain in the prince ; 
the princess Anne to succeed after the death of the prince 
and princess of Orange ; and her issue after those of the 
princess, but before those of the prince by any other wife.' 
To this settlement the convention annexed a declaration 
of rights, in which the powers of royal prerogative were 
more narrowly circumscribed, and more exactly defined, 
than at any former period. 

Soon after, similar resolutions having been passed by 
the Scottish convention, William and Mary were proclaim'- 
ed in both kingdoms. 



WILLIAM AND MARY* 371 

CHAPllllfV^IIT. 

The reign of William and Mary. 

The revolution, as it is called, formed a new epoch in 
the constitution, which now assumed a different aspect ; 
and, it may be affirmed, without any danger of ex- 
aggeration, that, since that period, the British have ipoQ 
enjoyed a system of government the most perfect 
and the most free that was ever established in the world. 

While, however, William and Mary were thus peacea- 
bly established on the throne of Great Britain, a very dif- 
ferent scene presented itself in Ireland. The catholics 
in that country saw with reluctance the events which bad 
taken place, and testified their adherence to James. 

The earl of Tyrconnel, the lord deputy, disguised his 
sentiments, and amused William with false hopes of sub- 
mission, till James should be able to supply him with re- 
inforcements from France, which he earnestly solicited by 
private messages. 

In the mean time, the whigs, who were the prevailing 
party in the state, determined that the revenue for the 
maintenance of the king's household, and the support of 
nis dignity, should be granted from one year to another 
only, in order that William, finding himself constantly de- 
pendant on parliament, might endeavour to merit a re- 
newal of tKe grant by a just and popular government. 
The king, however, was disgusted with these restraints, 
which he considered as marks of distrust ; and the tories 
seized this occasion to foment his jealousy against their 
adversaries. William recommended to parliament a bill 
of indemnity, as the most effectual means of putting an 
end to all controversies and distinctions ; but this was de- 
feated for some time by the address of the whigs, who 
were sensible that the bill would open a way to the prefer- 
ment of the tories. The two parties, however, were now 
io equally balanced in parliament, that the bill for restoring 
corporations to their ancient rights passed by one vote only, 
with the rejection of two clauses against those who had 
been concerned in the surrender of charters. 

The king found himself so perplexed between tvA'-o fac- 
tions, which he equally feared, that he had resolved to 
leave the government in the queen's hands, and retire into 



372 HISTORY OP ENGLAND* 

Holland ; but he was dissijuyed from this purpose by the 
marquis of Caermarthen wfk other noblemen whom he 
consulted, and finding the tories more compliant, he be- 
gan to gratify them at the expense of the whigs. The lat- 
ter were foiled or out-voted in several favourite schemes ; 
and the earl of Shrewsbury resented this so highly, that he 
resigned his office of secretary of state* 

William having wholly given himself up to the politics 
of the tories, was soon gratified with the hereditary excise 
during life, and the customs for four years. The bill of 
indemnity, so earnestly recommended by the king, was 
also passed, with the exception of thirty persons. 

At this period, the great scheme which William had 
projected, of a confederacy against France, began to take 
effect. The emperor negotiated an alliance, off*ensive and 
defensive, with the States General ; and Spain and Eng* 
land were invited to accede to the treaty- William, who 
was at the head of this confederacy, found no difficulty in 
persuading the English to undertake a war against their 
ancient rivals ; and the commons unanimously resolved, 
that in case his majesty should think fit to engage in hos-' 
lilities with France, they vt'^ould enable him to cany on the 
war with vigour. This was very agreeable to the king ; 
and war was immediately declared against the French 
monarch. 

Louis XIV., who had long rendered himself the terror 
and the scourge of Europe, was not dejected by this con- 
federacy against him. He supplied James with a consi- 
derable fleet for the invasion of Ireland, and the ex-prince, 
with about twelve hundred British subjects, and several of 
the most distinguished French officers, landed at Kin- 
sale, on the 22d of March, 1689. The earl of Tyrconnel 
had assembled an army of thirty thousand foot, and eight 
thousand borse, for the service of his master ; and the 
whole kingdom, except the ci^ty of Londonderry, received 
James with submission. 

Finding his affairs in Ireland in a desperate state, and 

that he had been deceived by those in whom he had con* 

fided, William determined to pass over into that island in 

person. A general engagement took place on the banks 

of the Boyne, in which the Irish wei*e entirely de- 

1 fion ^"^^^^^ 5 ^^^ James retired to Dublin^ whence he fled 

a second time into France; but the hopes and the 

spirits of his party were not yet vanquished. 



WILLIAM ANt) MARY. 373 

A French fleet being discovered off Plymouth, the earl 
ot'To«rrington, the English adfliral, reinforced with a Dutch 
squadron, put to sea, in order to intercept the enemy, if an 
attempt should be made to sail up the channel. After the 
hostile fleets had continued in sight of each other for five 
days, lord Torrington bore down upon the enemy off'Blea* 
chey He-ad ; and an engagement ensued, in which the Eng- 
lish were defeated, with the loss of two of their own ships, 
and of six vessels belonging to the Dutch. A camp was 
immediately formed in the neighbourhood of Torbay, where 
the French seemed to threaten a descent ; but their fleet, 
after setting fire to the small village of Teignmouth, and 
burning a few coasting vessels, returned to Brest. 

The news of the victory obtained by the French fleet 
efi^aced all thoughts of submission on the part of the Irish, 
and an offer of indemnity from William, to those who 
would lay down their arms, produced little effect. This, 
however, only increased the misery of that unhappy coun- 
try, which suffered from both parties ; but, at length, the 
French forces embarked for their own country: and Wil- 
liam, having constituted the,lord Sydney and Thomas Co- 
ningsby lord-justices of Ireland, and left the command of 
the army with count de Solmes and baron de Ginkle, re- 
turned to England with prince George of Denmark. 

Next year the Irish rebels were entirely reduced, and a 
capitulation was executed, extending to all the places in 
that kingdom which had not yet submitted. By it, the 
catholics were restored to the same rights and pri- 
vileges as they had enjoyed under Charles II. ; and ^^(?,* 
twelve thousand of the determined adherents of 
James were allowed to transport themselves to France. 

The conquest of Ireland being thus effected, the French 
king resolved to invade England during the absence of 
William, who had sailed for Holland, in order to promote 
the measures of the grand confederacy. Louis seemed 
warmly engaged in the interest of James ; and the Jaco- 
bites* in England were assured, that their lawful sovereign 
would revisit his British dominions at the head of thirty 
thousand men. 

Accordingly, a considerable body of French forces, and 

* A term given to the partisans of James, or the adherents <»f tlie 
•x-family. 

32 



374 HISTORY OF ENGLANB. 

many fugitive Irish and Scots, assembled between Cher 
bourgh and La Hogue, conftianded by James in person ; 
while a French fleet, of sixty-three ships of the line, under 
admiral Tourville, was appointed to convoy the troops. 
Admiral Russel, with a fleet of ninety-nine ships of the 
line, English and Dutch, besides frigates and fire-ships, 
set sail for the coast of France. On the 19th of May, 
1692, the hostile fleets met ofi^ La Hogue; and after a 
bloody contest of nearly twelve hours, victory declared in 
favour of the English. The French lost fifteen ships of 
the line ; and this defeat reduced James to the greatest 
despondence, and overwhelmed his friends in England 
with despair. 

The war, however, was continued on the continent for 
some years, with various success ; but at last it was ter- 
minated by the treaty of Rhyswick, with no advan- 
,^q^ tage to England beyond honour and independence, 
and with the burden of a national debt which has 
since increased to an enormous amount. 

The terrors of a standing army produced a general fer- 
ment in the nation ; and the king was extremely mortified, 
when the commons voted, that the number of standing 
forces should be reduced to ten thousand. The earl of 
Sunderland, who had advised the unpopular measure of a 
standing army, dreading the vengeance of the commons, 
resigned his oflice. 

William at this time revolved in his mind the settling of 
the succession of the throne of Spain, which would shortly 
be vacated by the death of Charles II. ; and he, therefore, 
directed that sixteen thousand men should be retained in 
the service. When the new parliament met, the commons 
were so irritated at the king's presuming to maintain a 
greater number of troops than their predecessors had voted, 
that they passed a resolution that the army in England 
and Wales should be disbanded by a fixed day, with the 
exception of seven thousand men, who were judged sufli- 
cient for guards and garrisons. 

William was highly indignant at the conduct of his mi- 
nisters and the parliament ; but when the bill was ready 
for the royal assent, he went to the house of peers, and 
havincp sent for the commons, he told them, that though he 
considered himself unkindly treated, in being deprived of 
bis Dutch guards, yet as nothing could be more fatal to the 



WILLIAM AND MAR?. 375 

nation, than a distrust between him and the parliament, he 
had come to pass the bill, acdording to their desire. 

1'he opening of a new parliament promised more cordi- 
ality, and the commons in an address desired his majesty 
to enter into such neaociations with the States-Ge- 

• -•AT) 

neral and other potentates, as might most etfectu- ^lyni 
ally conduce to the mutual safety of Great Britain 
and the United Provinces, as well as to the preservation of 
the peace of Europe. They also settled the succession, in 
case the princess Anne should die without issue, on Sophia 
of Hanover, and her heirs, being protestants. 

The treaty of partition, however, into which William 
had entered with the court of France, for the division of 
the Spanish dominions on the death of the reigning sove- 
reign, gave great offence. Among the competitors for that 
crown, the dauphin, who had married the king of Spain's 
daughter, was to be allowed to possess the greatest part of 
Italy; and other allotments were made, which tended to 
lessen the danger of one person succeeding to too exten- 
sive dominions. In order to frustrate the objects of the 
confederacy, the king of Spain by will nominated the duke 
of Anjou, second son of the dauphin, heir to all his domi- 
nions ; by which means he detached the French monarch 
from the union he had formed. 

The parliament, in order to evince their resentment at 
the clandestine treaty of partition, ordered an impeachment 
of lord Somers, the earl of Orford, and the earl of Halifax, 
but the commons not appearing to prosecute, the three 
lords were acquitted ; and William, encouraged by a peti- 
tion from the county of Kent, and the general voice of the 
people, entered into a league with the emperor and the 
States-General, the principal objects of which were the re- 
covery of the Spanish Netherlands, as a barrier for Hol- 
land, and of Milan for the emperor. 

Ring James expired at St. Germain's, and was interred, 
at his own request, in the church of the English Benedic- 
tines, in Paris, without any funeral solemnity. Before his 
death he was visited by the French monarch, who declared 
that he would acknowledge his son as king of England. 
Accordingly, when James died, the pretended prince of 
Wales was proclaimed king of England, and treated as 
such at the court of Versailles. 

In his speech to the parliament, William enlarged on 



376 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

this indignity offered to the nation by the French king ; 
and explained the dangers m which England was exposed 
by that monarch placing his grandson on the throne of 
Spain. In an address to his majesty, the commons voted 
that no peace should be concluded with France, till repa- 
ration should be made to the king and nation, for owning 
and declaring the pretended prince of Wales, king of Eng- 
land, Scotland, and Ireland. They also voted a large sup- 
ply ; and they agreed that the proportion of the land for- 
ces, to act in conjunction with the allies, should be forty 
thousand men, and that forty thousand seamen should be 
employed for the service of the ensuing year. 

The health of William had been declining for some 
time ; but he endeavoured to conceal the inroads which he 
felt were making in his constitution, in order that the al- 
lies might not be discouraged from engaging in a confe- 
deracy of which he was considered the chief. In riding to 
Hampton Court from Kensington, his collar-bone was 
broken by a fall from his horse ; and this hasten- 
^ly^^ ed his dissolution. He expired on the eighth day 
of March, of a fever and asthma, in the thirteenth 
year of his reign. His amiable consort, Mary, had fallen a 
victim to the small-pox a few years before. 

William HI. was in his person small and slender. He 
had an aquiline nose, a large forehead, and a grave as- 
pect. His genius was penetrating, and his judgment 
sound ; but in his manners he was distant, and better quali- 
fied to gain respect than love. He was rehgious, tempe- 
rate, just, and sincere. England, in some respects, gained 
very much by the revolution, while in others, it was a se- 
vere sufferer. The system of borrowing money oh remote 
funds, which began in this reign, has been attended with 
the most pernicious consequences ; and a standing army, 
which was first sanctioned by parhament in the time of 
William, now seems interwoven with the constitution ; 
but when we consider the noble stand which WiHiam 
made for the freedom of Europe, against the ambitious 
projects and dangerous influence of France, we must ac- 
knowledge, that he possessed qualities of the first order, 
which entitle him to the applause and respect of mankind. 
In 1604, the bank of England, and the salt and stamp- 
offices, were established. 



ANNE* 377 

OHAB: XIX 

The reign of Queen Anne* 

Anne, princess of Denmark, the eldest surviving daugh- 
ter of James the Second, ascended the throne on the 
death of William, with the general satisfaction of 
all parties. She was now in the thirty-eighth year -. 1^^ 
of her age, and by her husband, George, prince of 
Denmark, had a numerous offspring, all of which died in 
infancy, except the duke of Gloucester, who, after giving 
promises of future worth, was seized with a malignant fe- 
ver, which put an end to his existence in the eleventh year 
of his age. 

Anne had received great mortifications in the late reign; 
but she conducted herself with so much discretion, that 
little or no pretence for censure or resentment could be 
alleged. The facility of her disposition, however, render- 
ed her the dupe of interested and artful dependents: and 
it was owing to this that a serious misunderstanding had 
taken place between her and the late king and queen,^ 
which continued till the death of the latter. Anne had 
been taught to consider the tories as friends of the monar- 
chy, and the true sons of the church ; and they had al- 
ways professed an inviolable attachment to her person and 
interest. 

The death of William excited the greatest consterna- 
tion throughout Holland ; but the anxiety of the States- 
General was relieved, by the arrival of tlie earl of Marl- 
borough, who assured them that her majesty would ad- 
here to all the stipulations which had been entered into by 
the late king. 

In her first speech to parliament, Anne made the most 
conciliatory declaration of her views and principles ; and 
in return, they settled on her, during life, the same reve- 
nue as had been enjoyed by the late king. When the bill 
received the royal assent, the queen assured them, that one 
hundred thousand pounds of this revenue should be ap- 
plied to the public service of the year. 

When the subject of the intended war was debated in 

the queen's privy-council, the earl of Rochester, maternal 

uncle to the queen, proposed that the English should act 

only as auxiliaries, and that the chief burden of the war 

32* 



378 HISTORY OP UNGLANfi. 

should be borne by the continental allies, who had most 
to fear from tlie power of France ; but the earl of Marl- 
borough observed, that France could never be reduced 
within due limits, unless the English entered as princi- 
pals in the quarrel. The opinion of Marlborough prevail- 
ed ; and he was also appointed captain-general of all her 
majesty's forces, to be employed in conjunction with the 
troops of the allies. 

The Dutch too, to whom the earl had been sent ambas- 
sador-extraordinary, gave him the same appointment over 
their forces ; and the alUes having promised to furnish 
their quotas of troops, every thing was concerted for com- 
mencing the war, the avowed object of which, as far as 
concerned England, was to put the house of Austria in 
possession of the throne of Spain, and to procure a barrier 
for the Dutch in the Netherlands. 

Marlborough, at the head of sixty thousand men, took 
the field in the month of July, and obliged the duke of 
Burgundy, who commanded the French army, to retire 
* before the allied tr.oops, and to leave Spanish 
,l,j^ Guelderland exposed. The town and castle of 
Werk surrendered ; Venlo capitulated ; and Rure- 
monde was reduced after an obstinate defence. Boufflers, 
whom Burgundy had left in the command, confounded at 
the rapidity of Marlborough's success, retired towards 
Liege ; but, at the approach of the confederates, he direct- 
ed his march towards Brabant ; and Marlborough took 
that city by assault, in which the allies found considerable 
public booty. 

Meanwhile, the combined fleets of England and Hol- 
land, under the command of sir George Rooke, after an 
unsuccessful attack on Cadiz, captured the Spanish gal- 
leons at Vigo, with riches to the amount of seven million 
pieces of eight. 

Marlborough, who arrived in England about the latter 
end of November, received the thanks of the house of com- 
mons for his great and signal services, which were so ac- 
ceptable to the queen, that she created him a duke, and 
complimented him with a grant of five thousand pounds 
per annum out of the post-office. About the same time, 
the parliament settled the yearly sum of one hundred 
thousand pounds on George, prince of Denmark, the 
queen's consort, in case he should survive her. 



ANNE* 379 

In the iieXt campaign^ the duke of Marlborough, being 
unable to provoke marshal Villeroy to hazard a battle, was 
obliged to content hnnseif with the capture of 
Bonne, Huy, Limburgh, and Gueldres. The duke i^O,'^ 
was restricted in his enterprises by the deputies of 
the States-General, who began to be influenced by the in- 
trigues of the Louvestein faction. 

£n the beginning of next year, the duke of Marlborough 
assembled his army at Maestricht ; and having concerted 
the plan of operations with the States, he crossed 
the Rhine at Coblentz. After effecting a junction i^^J^ 
with prince Eugene and the imperialists, the allied 
army, on the second day of July, attacked the Bavarians 
in their intrenchments at Donavert ; and, after an obsti- 
nate resistance, succeeded in defeating the enemy, who 
left six thousand men dead on the field of battle. 

The elector of Bavaria, being joined by marshal Tal 
lard, crossed the Danube. The duke of Marlborough and 
prince Eugene found the enemy advantageously jjpsted 
upon a hill near Hochstadt, their right being covered by 
tlie Danube and the village of Blenheim, their left by the 
village of Lutzingem, and their front by a rivulet, the 
banks of which were steep, and the bottom marshy. Not- 
withstanding these diificulties, the generals resolved to at- 
tack the French and Bavarians, whose army amounted to 
sixty thousand men. Marshal Tallard commanded on the 
right, and threw twenty-seven battalions, with twelve 
squadrons, into the village of Blenheim, where he sup- 
posed the allies would make their chief effort ; their lef . 
was conducted by the elector of Bavaria, assisted by Mar- 
sin, a French general of experience. 

The duke of Marlborough, taking advantage of the in- 
judicious arrangement of his opponent, ordered the villa- 
ges to be attacked by his infantry, and with his horse in 
person fell on the French cavalry, commanded by marshal 
Tallard. After several charges, the French horse were 
totally subdued, a-nd driven into the Danube, where most 
of them perished ; and ten battalions of foot were at the 
same time charged on all sides, and cut to pieces. The 
elector of Bavaria made a resolute defence against prince 
Eugene, but, at length, was oblig-ed to give way. The 
confederates being now masters of the field, surrounded 
the village of Blenheim ; and the twenty-seven battalions 



380 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

and twelve squadrons, despairing of forcing their \va/ 
through the alHes, surrendered themselves prisoners of 
war. 

Never was a victory more complete. Ten thousand 
French and Bavarians were left dead on the field of bat- 
tle ; the greater part of thirty squadrons of horse perished 
in the Danube ; and thirteen thousand were made prison- 
ers ; and the enemy lost their camp equipage, baggage, 
and artillery. Marshal Tallard was taken prisoner. Tlie 
allies concluded the campaign, with the capture of Lan- 
dau and Trierbach. 

Sir George Rooke, who had been sent with a squadron 
to Barcelona, made a sudden and successful attack on 
Gibraltar, and took possession of that important fortress, 
which has ever since belonged to England. 

In the campaign of 1705, the object of the duke of Marl- 
borough was to penetrate to France by the Moselle ; but 
his operations were ill-seconded by prince Louis of Ba- 
den, who was suspected of treachery, or who was actua- 
ted by envy of the duke's military reputation. In the 
mean time, the French invested and took Huy, and besie- 
ged Liege ; but Marlborough, returning into the Nether- 
lands, retook Huy, and obliged the French to abandoR 
their enterprise against Liege. The English general, in- 
flamed with a desire of achieving some action of impor- 
tance, attacked the enemy in their lines, defeated the Ba- 
varian cavalry with great slaughter, and obliged the infant- 
ry also to give way. 

Meanwhile, an English fleet, with five thousand troops 
under the command of the earl of Peterborough and sii 
Cloudesly Shovel, being joined by a Dutch squadron at 
Lisbon, and re-enforced by a body of horse from the earl 
of Galway's army in Portugal, having taken the archduke 
Charles on board, directed its course to Catalonia. The 
troops were disembarked at Barcelona, and Charles land- 
ed amidst the acclamations of a countless multitude, who 
threw themselves at his feet, exclaiming, " I^ong live the 
king !" Barcelona was compelled to capitulate ; and the 
whole province of Catalonia declared for Charles, who 
now assumed the title of king of Spain, and took up his 
winter quarters in the heart of that country. 

Villeroy having received orders to act on the offensive, 
passed the Doyle, advanced to Tirlemont, and from thence 



ANNE. 381 

to Ramilies, where he met the miited army of the 
alhes. Both sides prepared for battle. The duke ^J^^ 
of Marlborough order^ Ueutenaiit-general Schultz, ^ 

with twelve battalions, and twenty pieces of cannon, to 
attack the village of Ramilies, which was strongly fortified 
with artillery. 

The main body of the enemy were speedily driven from 
the field ; and the confederates obtained a complete victo- 
ry. About eight thousand French and Bavarians were 
killed or wounded ; and the allies captured the enemy's 
baggage and artillery, about one hundred and twenty co- 
lours or standards, six hundred ofiicers, and six thousand 
private soldiers. 

The entire conquest of Brabant, and almost all Spanish 
Flanders, was the immediate result of the battle of Rami- 
lies. Louvaine, Mechlin, Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, and 
Bruges, submitted without resistance ; Ostend was obliged 
to capitulate; and the captures of Menin, Dendermonde, 
and Aeth, speedily followed. 

In Spain, the French were also unsuccessful : anc^ing 
Philip was obliged to raise the seige of Barcelona. The 
earl of Galway advanced into Estremadura, took Alcan- 
tara, and marched to Madrid, which the English and Por- 
tuguese entered without resistance. 

In Italy, the French were defeated by prince Eugene 
at Turin, and the duke of Savoy entered his capital in tri- 
umph. The duke of Orleans retreated into Dauphine ; 
while the French garrisons were expelled from every place 
they occupied in Piedmont and Italy, with the exception 
of Cremona, Valenza, and the castle of Milan, which were 
blockaded by the confederates. 

In return for the great services which he had rendered 
his country, the commons, in an address, besought her ma- 
jesty to consider the means by which the memory of the 
duke of Marlborough's noble actions might be perpetuated. 
The queen informed them by a message, that she intended 
to grant to the duke and his heirs, the interest of the crown 
in the honour and manor of Woodstock and the hundred 
of Wooten ; and she desired the assistance of the house, 
in clearing from incumbrance the lieutenancy and ranger- 
ship of the park, with the rents and profits of the manor 
and hundred, which had already been alienated for two 
lives. Accordingly, a bill was brought in and passed, en- 



382 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

abling the queen to bestow the aforesaid honour and ma- 
nor on the duke of Marlborough and his heirs ; and her 
majesty was desired to advance the fnoney for clearing the 
incumbrances. The queen not only complied with this 
address, but likewise ordered the comptroller of her works 
to build on Woodstock-park, the magnificent palace or 
castle of Blenheim, as a monument of the signal victoiy 
obtained by the duke of Marlborough near the village of 
that name. 

Previously to this, the queen, with the concuiTcnce of 
parliament, had alienated that branch of the revenue 
which arose from the first-fruits and tenths paid by the 
clergy, and vested it in trustees for the augmentation of 
small livings. At the same time, the statute of mortmain 
was repealed, so far as to allow all persons to bestow by 
will, or grant by deed, what they should think fit for the 
increase of benefices. 

The union between England and Scotland, which was 
effajjijMi about this time, was an event more glorious and 
ben^^ial than the most splendid success of the British 
arms. This measure, however, imperiously urged by wis- 
dom, was violently opposed by popular prejudice in Scot- 
land; but, at length, the two kingdoms were united under 
one legislature, and one government ; and the 
■tlyfy^ union, though unpromising in its origin, has been 
productive of happiness and prosperity to both 
kingdoms. 

In the meantime, Louis, whose pride had been greatly 
humbled by the victories of the duke of Marlborough, and 
the exertions of the English, offered peace on the follow- 
ing terms : That Milan, Naples, and Sicily, should be given 
to the archduke ; that a barrier in the Netherlands should 
be allowed to the Dutch ; and that the duke of Savoy should 
be indemnified for the ravages committed in his dominions. 
In return for these concessions, he demanded the quiet 
possession of the throne of Spain and the Indies to his 
grandson, Philip V., and the restitution of Bavaria to its 
native prince. 

These offers, however, were rejected ; and the charac- 
ter of the duke of Marlborough was at this time so high in 
the nation, that both houses of parliament renewed their 
thanks to him, passed a bill to perpetuate his titles in the 



ANNE* 383 

female as well as the male line, and readily voted supplies 
for prosecuting the war. 

But, notwithstanding all his grace's abilities and influ* 
ence, he could not escape the envy which too frequently 
attends on transcendant talents and uninterrupted success. 
Mrs. Masham, a distant relation of the duchess of Marl 
borough, who had, from this connexion, obtained the of- 
fice of woman of the bed chamber, succeeded to that as- 
cendancy over the mind of her sovereign, which the duchess 
had long maintained. This favourite was more obliging 
than her benefactress, who had frequently opposed the 
wishes of the queen ; and in political intrigues, she acted 
as auxiliary to Mr. Robert Harley, who had been appointed 
secretary of state, and who determined to destroy the cre- 
dit of the duke of Marlborough and the earl of Godolphin. 
His intention was to unite the tories under his own aus- 
pices, and expel the whigs from the administration ; and, 
in this scheme, he was assisted by Henry St. John, after- 
wards lord Bolingbroke, a man of elegant taste and an as- 
piring mind, whose talents, however, were rather specious 
than profound, and whose principles were loose and un- 
settled. 

The duke of Marlborough and the earl of Godolphin, 
apprized of the secret intrigues which Mr. Harley carried 
on with Mrs. Masham, informed the queen that they could 
serve her no longer, if that minister were continued in his 
office of secretary. The queen endeavoured to appease 
their resentment, but in vain ; and she was obliged to re- 
move Mr. Harley from his office; but her majesty was in- 
dignant at the conduct of the duke and the earl of Godol- 
phin, from whom she withdrew her confidence. 

At this period, the nation was alarmed with a threatened 
invasion from France, in favour of the pretender, or the 
chevalier St. George, as he was called. The queen com- 
municated to the commons the advice Avhich she had re- 
ceived of the destination of the French armament ; and 
both houses immediately joined in a loyal and atfeciionate 
address on this occasion ; the habeas corpus act was sus- 
pended ; the pretender and his adherents were proclaimed 
traitors and rebels ; and a bill was passed, discharging the 
clans of Scotland, where it was expected the chevalier 
would land, from all vassalage to those chiefs who should 
arm against her majesty. 



384 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

Preparations for this expedition were made at Dunkirk, 
where a fleet was assembled under count Fourbin, and a 
body of land forces embarked ; and this armament, after 
leaving Dunkirk, directed its course for Scotland. Sir 
George Byng, who had received advice of its departure 
from the coast of France, pursued the enemy with an Eng- 
lish squadron so closely, that both fleets arrived in the 
Frith of Forth almost at the same time ; when the French 
commander, despairing of success, and unwilling to try the 
issue of a battle, took advantage of a land-breeze, and 
sailed away. The pretender desired to be set on shore 
at Inverness ; but this being found impracticable, the che- 
valier and his general returned to Dunkirk. 

The duke of Marlborough, with his usual success, de- 
feated the French near Oudenarde. In this battle, 
^^j?Q the French had about three thousand men killed 

' in the field, and seven thousand taken prisoners. 
After obtaining this victory, the allies invested Lisle, the 
strongest place in Flanders, and the bulwark of the French 
barrier. Prince Eugene commanded, and the duke of 
Marlborough covered and sustained the siege. The gar- 
rison was numerous, and was commanded by a marshal of 
France ; but nothing could resist bravery and skill united. 
The enemy assembled all their forces, and marched to the 
relief of the place, but were only spectators to its fall. 
The duke obhged the elector of Bavaria to raise the siege 
of Brussels ; and re-took Ghent and Bruges, which had 
been lost by treachery. 

On the twenty-eighth of October of this year, died 
Georo'e, prince of Denmark, a personage who possessed 
all the amiable qualities of his consort, but who was devoid 
of great talents and ambition. At his de^h, the earl ot 
Pembroke was created lord high-admiral, the earl of 
Wharton was promoted to the government of Ireland, and 
lord Somers appointed president of the council. Notwith- 
standing the advancement of these whig noblemen, the 
duke of Marlborough contnmed to decline in his credit 
with the queen, who privately consulted, and placed her 
chief confidence in Mr. Harley, though the latter held no 
ostensible situation in the administration. 

Meanwhile, the duke of Savoy, by making himself mas- 
ter of the important fortresses of Exilles, La Perouse, the 
valley of St. Martin, and Fenestrells, had not only secured 



ANNE* 385 

a barriei* to his own frontiers, but opened a way into the 
French provinces on the side of Dauphine ; while the pos- 
session of Lisle exposed that monarchy on the side of the 
Netherlands. 

During this campaign, major-general Stanhope, with 
three thousand men, having landed on the island of Mi- 
norca, took fort ^. Philip in three days ; and the garrison 
of fort Fornelles having surrendered themselves prisoners 
to admiral sir John Leake, the whole island submitted to 
the English government. 

By this time the pride of Louis was humbled, and he 
once more made proposals of peace to the Dutch ; but the 
States immediately communicated his proposals to the 
courts of Vienna and London ; and the emperor appoint- 
ed prince Eugene of Savoy, and Great Britain the duke of 
Marlborough, as their respective plenipotentiaries. The 
allies, however, rendered insolent by conquest, made de- 
mands which were considered extravagant by the French 
monarch, who, gathering resolution from despair, publish- 
ed them and his own concessions ; and the people, ani- 
mated with the desire of defending their king and country, 
displayed extraordinary efforts in preparing to resist the 
tremendous power of the enemy. 

The allies, on their side, were equally active. Marlbo- 
rough and prince Eugene proceeded to Flanders ; and the 
allied army assembled on the plain of Lisle, to the number 
of one hundred and ten thousand men. Tournev soon 
fell, and the siege of Mons was formed. The French ar- 
my, amounting to one hundred and twenty thousand 
men, were posted in the neighbourhood of Malpla- ily^A 
quet. In the night of the tenth of September, the 
two armies arrayed themselves in order of battle ; and, 
about eight o'clock the next morning, one of the most fu- 
rious contests that had taken place in this war commenced. 
The battle was maintained with the most determined cou- 
rage on both sides.. The French fought with an obstinacy 
bordering on despair, till seeing their lines forced, and 
their general dangerously wounded, they retreated in good 
order, and took post between Quesnoy and Valenciennes. 
The field of battle was abandoned to the confederates, with 
about forty colours and standards, sixteen pieces of artil- 
lery, and a number of prisoners ; but it was the dearest 
victory the allies had ever purchased. About twenty thou- 
33 



3S6 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

sand of their best troops were killed in the engagement^ 
while the enemy did not lose half that number. The bat 
tie of Malplaquet, however, was followed by the surrender 
of Mons ; and this achievement terminated the campaign. 
Some attempts at negotiation were again made by Louis ; 
but in proportion to his concessions, the allies rose in theii 
demands. # 

During this campaign, the military operations in Spain 
and Portugal were unfavourable to the aUies. The castle 
of Alicant, garrisoned by two English regiments, had been 
besieged during a whole winter. At length, the com- 
mander of the besieging forces ordered the rock on which 
the castle was situated to be undermined ; and colonel 
Syburgh, the governor, was informed, that it was intended 
to spring the mine, if he did not surrender in twenty-four 
hours. Syburgh, however, refused to comply ; and the 
rock being split by the explosion, the colonel and several 
officers were swallowed up in the opening, which imme- 
diately closed upon them ; but notwithstanding this terri- 
ble accident, the garrison persisted in its defence, till the 
arrival of general Stanhope, who procured an honourable 
capitulation. 

Henry Sacheverell, a man of very moderate talents, but 
of a busy and meddling disposition, in a sermon preached 
at St. Paul's, on the fifth day of November, took occasion 
to inveigh with bitterness against the ministry, the dissent- 
ers, and the low church ; he defended the doctrine of non- 
resistance, and declaring religion to be in danger, exhorted 
the people to stand up in defence of the church. This ser- 
mon being printed, was speedily dispersed over the king- 
dom ; and Mr. Dolben, son of the late archbishop of York, 
complained of it to the house of commons, in consequence 
of which Sacheverell was taken into custody and impeached. 

The attention of the whole kingdom was fixed on this 
extraordinary trial, though neither the man nor his publi- 
cation deserved any other than silent contempt. The trial 
continued for three weeks ; and a vast multitude attended 
Sacheverell every day to and from Westminster-hall, pray- 
ing for his deliverance as if he had been a martyr. The 
(jueen's sedan was surrounded by the populace, who ex- 
claimed, " God bless your majesty and the church ; we 
hope your majesty is f ^r Sacheverell." They abused and 
ius\dted all who would not join in the cry of "the church 



m 

ANNE. 387 

and Sacheverell ;" destroyed several meeting-houses, and 
plundered the dwellings of eminent dissenters. 

Sacheverell was found guilty by a majority of seventeen 
voices ; he was prohibited from preaching for the term of 
three years ; and his sermon was ordered to be burnt in the 
presence of the lord-mayor and the sheriffs of London, be- 
fore whom it had been delivered. The lenity of the sen- 
tence, which was in a great measure owing to a dread of the 
popular fury, was celebrated as a triumph over the whigs. 

The French king, sensible that the misery of his people 
daily increased by the continuance of the war, again 
made overtures for peace; but finding that the ^ly^A 
allies would not listen to reasonable or honourable 
terms, and hoping that the approaching change in the 
English ministry might be productive of advantage to him, 
he resolved to await the events of another campaign. 
The duke of Marlborough, however, still continued his 
successes. He took Douay, Bethune, Venant, and Aire, 
which opened a free passage into the heart of France. 
On the Rhine, the campaign produced no military event ; 
and in Spain, both parties were by turns conquerors and 
conquered. 

In England, the effects of those intrigues which had 
been formed against the whig ministers, began to appear. 
The trial of Sacheverell had excited a popular spirit of 
aversion to those who favoured the dissenters ; and the 
queen expressed her attachment to the tories, by mortify- 
ing the duke of Marlborough, whose interest was not suffi- 
cient to prevent the dismission of his own son-in-law, the 
earl of Sunderland, from the office of secretary of state. 
Harley became sole minister, and was created earl of Ox- 
ford and Mortimer. 

The new ministry, however, had not yet determined to 
supersede Marlborough in the command of the army. In 
the next campaign, prince Eugene acted in Germany, and 
the duke of Marlborough was again opposed by marshal 
Villars, who had assembled a numerous army, and 
which he encamped in a strong position behind ^' J** 
the river Sanset. Villars boasted that the French 
lines were impregnable ; but the duke of Marlborough en- 
tered these lines without the loss of a single soldier"; and 
he afterwards reduced the strong town of Bouchain in the 
very sight of the French army, which was superior to his 



388 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

own, and made the garrison, consisting of six thousand 
men, prisoners of war. 

This was the last memorable military service performed 
by the duke of Marlborough. The ministers took every 
method which envy and malice could suggest, to exaspe- 
rate the nation against the duke, who had supported so 
uobly the glory of England, humbled the pride and check- 
ed the ambition of France, secured the liberty of Europe, 
and, as it were, chained victory to his chariot wheels. 
Of Marlborough it has been justly observed, that he never 
laid siege to a town which he did not take, or fought a 
battle which he did not win. His understanding was as 
injurious to France as his military abilities ; and he was 
equally famous in the cabinet as in the field. 

Such, however, is the violent conduct of faction, that 
this consummate general and statesman was ridiculed in 
public libels, and reviled in private conversation r He 
was represented as guilty of fraud, avarice, and extortion, 
and traduced as the meanest of mankind. Even his cou- 
rage was called in question ; and he was accused of inso- 
lence, ambition, and misconduct. When his enemies had 
become ministers, the same parliament, which had so often 
before voted him thanks for the great and important ser- 
vices he had performed, now determined, by a large ma 
jority, that some of his practices had been unwarrantable 
and illegal ; and on the strength of these resolutions, ori- 
ginating solely from party motives, the queen dismissed 
him from all his employments, and the command was gi- 
ven to the duke of Ormond. 

By the death of Joseph, emperor of Germany, his bro- 
ther, the archduke Charles, became possessed of all the 
hereditary states of the empire ; and soon after being 
elected emperor, the object of the war was certainly 
changed ; for his accession to the thrones of both Germa- 
ny and Spain would have effectually destroyed that ba- 
lance of power, for the maintenance of which so much 
blood had been spilt. 

A congress was therefore appointed at Utrecht; and, 
after negotiations had been long carried on at that place, 
peace wns signed, March 31, 1713, by all the belligerent 
powers, except the emperor. By the treaty of Utrecht, 
Spain and the Indies were confirmed to Philip ; but the 
Netherlands and the Spanish dominions in Italy were se- 



ANNE* 389 

parated from that monarchy. Naples, Sardinia, and Mi- 
lan, were bestowed on the emperor ; and Sicily, with the 
title of king, was given to the duke of Savoy. The Dutch 
had a barrier assigned them against France in the Netl\- 
erlands ; while all that Great Britain gained, after so glo- 
rious a war, and so many splendid victories, was the de- 
molition of Dunkirk, and the possession of Gibraltar and 
Minorca. 

The ambition of St. John, lord viscount Bolingbroke, 
would not allow him to act a subordinate part under Har- 
ley, earl of Oxford ; and the former had insinuated him- 
self into the confidence of Mrs. Masham, whom the latter 
had displeased. By means of that lady, Bolingbroke was 
confirmed in the good opinion of the queen, while Oxford 
in proportion lost the favour of his sovereign. The queen, 
harassed by discordant counsels, and perceiving her con- 
stitution giving way, was supposed by some to form real 
designs of securing the succession to her brother ; and it 
was strongly suspected, that Bolingbroke was attached to 
the same interest, and encouraged her majesty with the 
most flattering hopes of success. 

After the peace had received the sanction of parliament, 
the two rivals, unrestrained by the tie of common danger, 
gave a loose to their mutual animosity ; and a very acri- 
monious dialogue passed, on the 27th of July, between 
Mrs. Masham, Oxford, and Bolingbroke, in the presence 
of the queen. Soon after, Oxford was deprived of his 
badge of office ; but as no provision had been made for sup- 
plying his place, confusion and disorder ensued at court. 

The fatigue of attending-a long cabinet-council held on 

this occasion, and the altercation which passed between 

the ministers at the board, so agitated and aftected the 

queen's spirits, that she was immediately seized with an 

apoplectic disorder, which baffled all the power of medi- 

cine. Her majesty continued in a lethargic insen- 

jl, J sibility, with short intervals, till her death, which 

took place on the first day of August, in the fiftieth 

year of her age, and the thirteenth of her reign. 

Anne was of the middle size, and well proportioned ; 
her countenance was round, her features regular, her com- 
plexion ruddy, and her hair a dark brown. In domestic 
life, she was a pattern of conjugal affection, and a tender 
mother. She wanted, however, the vigour of mind re- 
33* 



890 MlStOUY OP ENGLAND. 

quisite to preserve her independence, and to free her frott» 
tlie snares of favourites ; but the virtues of her heart were 
never doubted ; and, notwithstanding the party feuds 
which embittered her repose, and disturbed her reign, she 
was personally beloved by her people. In a word, though 
her abilities were unequal to the high station which she 
filled, and her attachment to favourites Was injurious to 
her government and the nation, she was a humane and 
munificent sovereign, and well deserved the title, which 
her subjects gave her, of '* the good queen Anne." 



CHAP. XX. 

The reign of George J. 

If providence had granted a longer life to Anne, and 
the daring and ambitious St. John had continued to influ- 
ence her councils, there seems reason to suppose that at- 
tempts would have been made to restore the hereditary 
line. Certain it is, that the friends of the pretender de- 
rived great hopes from the ministry of Bolingbroke ; but 
the sudden death of the queen, by destroying the expecta- 
tions of the Jacobites, put an end to their present machi- 
nations, and thus removed the fears and apprehensions of 
the whigs. 

Agreeably to the act of settlement passed in the reign 
of William, George I. elector of Hanover, descend- 
ed by his mother from Elizabeth, daughter of i^i^ 
James I., was procltftmed king in due form, the 
very day of the queen's death, and the submission of the 
three kingdoms was as universal, as if no pretended claim 
existed. 

At the time of his ascending the throne of Great Britain, 
George was in the fifty-fifth year of his age. In about §ix 
weeks, he landed at Greenwich, where he was received by 
the lords of the regen6y ; and on the twentieth day of Oc- 
tober following, he was crowned at Westminster with the 
usual solemnity. 

The hopes and fears of both the whigs and tories were 
great at this time ; but the new sovereign had been prepos- 
sessed against the latter ; and his majesty efi'ected an in- 
stantaneous and total change in all important offices under 
government. The duke of Ormond was dismissed from 
jiis command, which the king I'estored to the duke of 



OEORGE I. 391 

Marlborough, with several new appointments ; tlie earl of 
Nottingham was declared president of the council ; the 
great seal was given to lord Cowper ; the privy-seal to the 
earl of Wharton ; and the vice-royalty of Ireland to the 
earl of Sunderland. Lord Townshend and Mr. Stanhope 
were appointed secretaries of state ; Mr. Pulteney secre- 
tary of war ; and Mr. Walpole, who had undertaken to 
manage the house of commons, was made paymaster to 
the army. The post of secretary for Scotland was bestowed 
on the duke of Montrose ; and the duke of Argyle was ap- 
pointed commander in chief of the forces in that country. 
Thus the whigs obtained an ascendancy both in and out 
of parliament. 

Meanwhile, the malcontents in England were consider- 
ably increased by the king's attachment to the whigs ; and 
dangerous tumults were raised in different parts of the 
kingdom. The pretender took this opportunity to trans- 
mit copies of a printed manifesto to various noblemen of 
the first distinction* In this declaration, he mentioned the 
good intentions of his sister towards him, which had been 
prevented by her death ; and observed, that his people had 
proclaimed for their king a foreign prince, contrary to the 
laws of hereditary right, which no act could abrogate. 

When the parliament met, the earl of Oxford, the duke 
of Ormond, the earl of Strafford, and lord Bolingbroke, 
were impeached, on account of the parts which they had 
acted in regard to the peace of Utrecht. Bolingbroke fled 
to the continent, and was followed by Ormond ; but though 
Oxford, Prior, and some others, were taken into custody, 
they all escaped punishment, Ormond and Bolingbroke, 
not surrendering themselves within the time appointed, the 
house of lords ordered their names to be erased from the 
list of peers ; and inventories were taken of their per- 
sonal estates. It is impossible to reflect on the ruin of tlie 
noble family of Ormond, in the person of a brave and hu- 
mane nobleman, whose only crime was obedience to the 
commands of his sovereign, without feeling the greatest 
indignation against those who were the promoters of such 
iniquitoas proceedings. 

The spirit of discontent daily increased in England; 
and notwithstanding the proclamations against riots, se- 
veral tumults were raised in the cities of London and 
Westminster. A trifling incident served to augment the 



3S^ HISTORY OP ENGLANB. 

public ferment. The shirts allowed to the first regiment 
of guards, commanded by the duke of Marlborough, were 
so coarsCf that the soldiers could scarcely be persuaded to 
wear them. Some of the shirts were thrown into the gar- 
den of the king's palace, and into that which belonged to the 
duke of Marlborough ; and a detachment, in marching 
through the city, produced them to the people, exclaiming, 
" These are the Hanover shirts." 

Tumults were raised in Staffordshire, and other parts of 
the kingdom ; and the house of commons presented an 
address to the king, desiring that the laws might be exe- 
cuted with vigour against rioters. They also passed a new 
act, by which it was decreed, that if any persons, to the 
number of twelve, unlawfully assembled, should continue 
together one hour after having been required to disperse 
by a justice of peace or other officer, and had heard the 
proclamation against riots read in public, they should be 
deemed guilty of felony without benefit of clergy. 

The king having infoiined both houses that a rebellion 
had actually commenced, and that the nation was threat- 
ened with a foreign invasion, the parliament immediately 
passed a law, empowering his majesty to secure suspected 
persons, and to suspend the habeas corpus act. About this 
period, the royal assent was given to an act for encoura- 
ging loyalty in Scotland. By this law, the tenant who 
continued peaceable, while his lord took up arms in favour 
of the pretender, was invested with the propriety of the 
lands he rented ; on the other hand, it decreed that the 
lands possessed by any person guilty of high-treason 
should revert to the superior of whom they were held ; and 
a clause was added for summoning all suspected persons 
to find bail for their good behaviour. By virtue of this 
clause, all the heads of the jacobite clans, and other sus- 
pected persons, were summoned to Edinburgh, and those 
who neglected to appear were declared rebels. 

The disaffected, both in England and Scotland, held 
private consultations with the Jacobites ; and the cheva- 
lier St. George was assured, that the whole nation was dis- 
satisfied with the new government. Resolving to take 
advantage of this favourable disposition, tlie chevalier ap- 
plied to the French king, who supplied him with the 
means of fitting out a small armament in the port of Havre ; 
but the death of Louis, which happened at this time, was 



GEORGE I. 303 

highly detrimental to his interests ; and the duke of Or- 
leans, on whom the regency of the kingdom devolved, 
adopted a new system of politics, and entered into ".ne 
strictest alliance with the king of Great Britain. 

The partisans of the pretender, however, had gone too 
far to recede. The earl of Mar, assembling three hun- 
dred of his vassals, proclaimed the chevalier at 
Castletown, and on the sixth of September, set up ill/i4 
his standard at Brae- Mar. Then assuming the title 
of lieutenant- general of the pretender's forces, he publish- 
ed a declaration, exhorting the people to arm for their 
lawful sovereign ; and this was followed by a manifesto, 
in which the national grievances were enumerated and 
aggravated, and the people promised redress. 

Meanwhile, the duke of Argyie set out for Scotland, as 
commander-in-chief of the forces in North Britain ; and 
the earl of Sutherland set sail for that country, to raise his 
vassals in defence of his liege sovereign. Other heads of 
clans did the same; and it was soon evident, that the 
voice of Scotland vi^as far from being general in favour of 
the pretender. 

In the north of England, however, the earl of Derwent- 
water and Mr. Foster took the field with a body of horse, 
and being joined by some gentlemen from the borders, 
proclaimed the chevalier in Warkworth, Morpeth, and 
Alnwick. After an ineffectual attempt on Newcastle, 
they retired northwards, and being reinforced by a body of 
troops under lords Kenmuir, Carnwath, and Wintown, 
the insurgents advanced to Kelso, where they were joined 
by Mackintosh, who had crossed the Forth with a body of 
highlanders. 

A council of war being called, the rebels determined to 
re-enter England by the western border. At Brampton, 
Foster opened his commission of general, and proclaimed 
the pretender. They continued their march to Penrith, 
where the sheriff, assisted by lord Lonsdale and the bishop 
of Carlisle, had assembled the posse comitatus of Cumber- 
land, amounting to twelve thousand men, who fled at the 
approach of this small army. From Penrith, the insur- 
gents proceeded by the way of Kendal and Lancaster to 
Preston, of which they took possession without opposition. 

General Willis marched against the rebels, with six 
regiments of horse and one battalion of foot, and had ad- 



394 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

vanced to the bridge of Rftble, before Foster received in- 
lelligence of their approach. At first, the king's troops 
met with a warm reception, but being reinforced next day 
with three regiments of dragoons, under general Carpen- 
ter, the town was invested on all sides. The rebels now 
proposed to capitulate, but the general refusing to treat, 
they surrendered at discretion. The noblemen and lead- 
ers were secured, and sent prisoners to London. Some of 
them were tried by the martial-law and executed ; and the 
common men were imprisoned at Chester and Liverpool, 
till the pleasure of government respecting them should be 
known. 

The very day on which the rebels surrendered at Preston, 
was fought the battle of Dumblane, between the duke of 
Argyle and the earl of Mar. The duke's army was far 
inferior in point of numbers ; but he obtained the advan- 
tage, though both sides claimed the victory. 

In this desperate situation of his affairs, the chevalier, 
embarking in a small vessel at Dunkirk, landed at Perhead 
on the twenty-second of December, and proceeded to Fet- 
terosse, where, being joined by the earls of Mar and Ma- 
rischal, and about thirty noblemen, and gentlemen of the 
first quality, he was proclaimed king. His declaration, 
dated at Commercy, was printed and circulated through 
all the adjacent counties ; and he received addresses from 
the episcopal clergy, and the laity of that communion, in 
Aberdeenshire. On the fifth of January, he made his pub- 
lic entry into Dundee ; and, on the seventh, he ar- 
,1,^ rived at Scone, where he assumed all the functions 
of royalty, and fixed his coronation for the twenty- 
third of the same month. 

This dream of royalty, however, w^as of short duration. 
In a council, at which all the chiefs of his party assisted, 
it was determined to abandon the enterprise, as they were 
destitute of money, arms and ammunition, and as they 
were beginning to be hemmed in by the king's army. 
The chevalier, being hotly pui*sued by tlic duke of Argyle, 
was glad to embark on board a French vessel which lay 
in the harbour of Montrose, from whence he sailed to 
France, accompanied by Mar, Melfort, Drummond, Bulk- 
ley, and other persons of distinction. 

The rebelhon being thus suppressed, the commons im- 
peached the nobility who had been engaged in this affair j 



GEDR6E I. S95 

but of them the earl of Derwentwater and lord Kenmuir 
alone suffered death ; and few of the lower ranks were exe- 
cuted in comparison with the number found guilty. About 
one thousand, who submitted to the king's mercy, petition- 
ed for transportation, and were sent to America. 

The ministry, sensible of the unpopularity of their mea- 
sures, and fearing the effects of a new parliament, deter- 
mined to repeal the triennial act, and by a new law 
to extend the term of parliaments to seven years. -tly^A 
Accordingly, on the tenth of April, the duke of 
Devonshire brought a bill into the house of lords for en- 
larging the continuance of parliaments, which was sup- 
ported by all the whig party ; and though it was strenu- 
ously opposed by the earls of Nottingham, Abingdon, and 
Paulet, it passed by a great majority ; and, in the lower 
house, it met with the same success. 

The Spanish king having taken Sardinia, and invaded 
Sicily, Great Britain, France, Holland and the emperor, 
formed a quadruple alliance against his catholic majesty. 
Bremen, and Verdun, which had been purchased with the 
money of England, were secured to Hanover, contrary to 
the act of settlement in the reign of king William. Admi- 
ral sir George Byng sailed with twenty ships of the line, 
for the Mediterranean ; and, on the eleventh of 
August, he met, off cape Passaro, on the south- i^|q 
east point of Sicily, with the Spanish fleet consist- 
ing of twenty-seven sail. An engagement ensued, in 
which sir George took or destroyed the greatest part of the 
hostile armament. 

The Spaniards now formed a scheme in favour of the 
pretender, and sent a squadron, with six thousand regular 
troops and twelve thousand stand of arras, under the duke 
of Ormond, to invade Great Britain. The Spanish fleet, 
however, was dispersed by a violent storm, which defeated 
the intended expedition ; but two frigates arrived in Scot- 
land, with the earls Marischal and Seaforth, the marquis 
of Tullibardine, and three hundred Spaniards. These 
being attacked by General Wightman, were entirely de- 
feated. Soon after, lord Cobham made a descent on 
Spain, and took Vigo; and his catholic majesty acceded 
to the quadruple alliance, which, indeed, was chiefly in 
favour of the emperor, who was desirous of adding Sicily 
to his other Italian dominions. 



306 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

On the royal recommendation to the commons to take 
the national debt into consideration, a scheme was 
171Q forwi^d, called the South-Sea act, which was pro- 
ductive of the greatest mischief and infatuation. 
The scheme was projected bj sir John Blount, who had 
been bred a scrivener, and who proposed to discharge the 
national debt, by reducing all the funds into one. The 
bank and South-Sea company bade against each other; 
and the terms of the latter were so advantageous, that go- 
vernment closed with them. 

While the matter was in agitation, the stock of the com 
pany rose from one hundred and thirty to nearly four hun- 
dred ; and though the Mississippi scheme of Law had ruin* 
ed many thousand families in France, in the pre^ 
1720 ^^^^^S y^^^j the people of England were so infa- 
tuated, that the example did not operate as a warn- 
ing. Blount imposed on the whole nation, which was 
seized with a kind of delirium. The projector and his 
associates pretended, that Gibraltar and Port Mahon would 
be exchanged for some places in Peru, by which means 
the English trade to the South-Sea would be protected and 
enlarged ; the directors opened their books for a subscrip- 
tion of one million, at the rate of three hundred pounds 
for one hundred, capital stock ; and such was the eager- 
ness of the multitude to subscribe, that in five days two 
millions were entered in the books, and stocks advanced 
to double the price of the first payment. 

By a promise of high dividends and other artifices, the 
South-Sea stock was raised to one thousand- Exchange- 
alley was daily filled with an infatuated crowd of all 
ranks ; but in the course of a few weeks the stock fell to 
one hundred and fifty ; and the ebb of this tide of hope 
was so violent, as to overwhelm in ruin an infinite num- 
ber of families. Public credit sustained a terrible shock- 
The principal actors in this nefarious undertaking were 
punished by parliament, and measures were adopted for 
giving some redress to the injured parties. 

In the beginning of May, it was reported, that the kinj: 

had received from the duke of Orleans information of a 

conspiracy against his person and s^overnment. In 

^jcyo consequence, a camp was immediately formed in 

Hyde park ; all military officers were ordered to 

repair to their respective posts; troops were sent from 



GEORGE I. 397 

Ireland ; the states of Holland were desired to have their 
auxiliary forces ready to be embarked ; and some suspect- 
ed persons were apprehended in Scotland. 

Among the individuals supposed to be implicated in this 
treasonable conspiracy, were Atterbury, bishop of Roches- 
ter; the earl of Orrery ; the lords North and Grey; Coch- 
rane and Smith, from Scotland; Christopher Layer, a 
young gentleman of the Temple ; George Kelley, an Irish 
clergyman ; Cotton, Bingley, and Fleetwood, Englishmen ; 
and one Naynoe, an Irish priest. All these were taken 
into custody, and committed to different prisons. 

On the meeting of the new parliament, his majesty in- 
formed them of the nature and extent of the plot, which, 
he said, if it had not been timely discovered, would have 
involved the whole nation, and particularly the city of 
London, in blood and confusion. The parliament sus- 
pended the habeas corpus act for a year; but the opposi- 
tion in the house of commons was so violent, that Mr. Ro- 
bert Walpole, the prime minister, endeavoured to rouse 
their apprehensions by informing them of a design to seize 
the bank and exchequer, and to proclaim the pretender 
on the Royal Exchange. To corroborate the whole, an 
original and printed copy of a declaration, signed by the 
pretender at Lucca, was laid before the house. In this 
curious paper, the chevalier expatiated on the grievances 
of England, and very gravely proposed, that if king George 
would relinquish the throne of Great Britain, he would, in 
return, bestow on him the title of king in his native domi- 
nions, and secure to him the succession to the British 
sceptre, whenever, in due course, his natural right should 
take place. 

The commons prepared a bill for raising one hundred 
thousand pounds on the real and personal estates of pa- 
pists, towards defraying the expenses incurred by the late 
rebellion and disorders ; and all persons of that faith in 
Scotland were called upon to register their names and 
real estates. 

These acts were followed by the trial, conviction, and 
execution of Layer. Against the lords who had been ar- 
rested, no evidence appeared, or at least was produced ; 
Out Atterbury, bishop of Rochester, had rendered himself 
fioo conspicuous to escape punishment. On mere conjec- 
ture and hearsay evidence, a bill of pains and penalties 
M 



398 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

passed the lower house against him, and was sent up to 
the lords, when the trial commenced. Nothing could be 
proved against hini, except the uncertain evidence of the 
clerks of the post-office; yet the bishop was deprived of 
all offices, benefices, and dignities, and rendered incapa- 
ble of enjoying any for the future ; he was also banished 
the realm, and subjected to the penalty of death in case 
he should return ; and all persons who should correspond 
with him in his exile, were declared guilty of a capital 
offence. 

The remainder of the reign of George the First presents 
little to excite attention. Intricate and contradictory trea- 
ties, most of which were inimical to the interests of this 
country, form the principal subjects of this portion of 
English history. 

The king was suddenly seized with a paralytic disorder, 

on the road from Holland to Hanover, and was conveyed 

in a state of insensibility to Osnaburgh, where he 

^IfjnC expired on Sunday, the 11th day of June, in the 

sixty-eighth year of his age, and the thirteenth of 

his reign. 

George I. was plain in his person, and simple in his ad- 
dress. His deportment was grave and composed, though 
he could be easy and familiar in the hours of relaxation. 
Before he ascended the throne of Great Britain, he was 
considered an able and experienced general, a just and 
merciful prince, and a consummate politician. "With these 
qualities, his disposition to govern England, according to 
the regulations of the British constitution, cannot be dis- 
puted ; and if ever he appeared to deviate from these prin- 
ciples, we readily allow, that the blame does not attach to 
him, but to his ministers, by whose venal suggestions he 
was misled. 

George I. married the princess Sophia Dorothy, daugh- 
ter of the duke of Zell, from whom he separated before 
he came to England. 



CHAP. XXI. 

The reign of George II, 
On the 14th day of June, an account was received of 
the late king's death, when the prince of Wales repaired 



GEORGE II. 390 

From Richmond to Leicester-house, where a privy- 
couacil was held, and next day, George II. was ^l^^Z 
proclaimed king with the usual solemnities. His 
majesty declared his firm purpose to preserve the consti- 
tution in church and state, and to adhere to those allian- 
ces into which his father had entered. At the same time, 
he took and subscribed the oath for the security of the 
church of Scotland, as required by the act of union ; and 
he continued all the great officers of state in their places. 

In his speech to both houses, on the opening of the par- 
liament, the king professed a fixed resolution to merit the 
love and affection of his people, by maintaining them in 
the full enjoyment of their religious and civil rights, and 
by studying to lessen the expenses of government on eve- 
ry occasion. 

Sir Robert Walpole followed these gracious assurances, 
by moving that the entire revenue of the civil-list, which 
produced about eight hundred thousand pounds per an- 
num, should be settled on the king during life ; and though 
Mr. Shippen and other patriots opposed any increase of 
the royal revenue, as inconsistent with the trust reposed 
in them, the motion was carried by a great majority ; and 
a liberal provision was made for- the queen, in case she 
should survive his majesty. In short, the two houses of 
parliament seemed to vie with each other in expressing 
their attachment to the new king : and, for a time, all par- 
ties appeared to be united in afi*ection to his person, and in 
submission to the proposals of his ministers. 

Sir Robert Walpole, though he disclaimed any intention 
of promoting a general excise, expatiated on the benefits 
which would accrue to the nation by a partial measure of 
that nature, and prevent numberless frauds on the public 
and the fair trader. The speech of the minister was fol- 
lowed by a motion that a partial excise on tobacco should 
be levied. This measure met with a violent opposition, as 
well from the consideration of the train of depen- 
dants it would produce, as from the dread of its ex- ^il<^ 
tension to other articles ; and the ferment became 
so great throughout the nation, that though the minister 
had a triumphant majority of sixty-one in the house of 
commons, he was obliged to waive the advantage, and 
abandon the scheme. 

Ever since the treaty of Seville, in 1729, the Spaniards 



400 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

in America had almost incessantly insulted and distressed 
the commerce of Great Britain. They disputed the right 
of the English to cut logwood in the hay of Campeachy, 
and gather salt on the island of Tortugas, though that right 
was acknowledged in all the treaties concluded between 
the two nations. The captains of their armed vessels, call- 
ed guard a-costas, made a practice of boarding and plun- 
dering English ships, on the pretence of searching for con- 
traband goods ; and various other acts of cruelty and injus- 
tice were committed. In particular, one Captain Jenkins, 
master of a Scottish merchant ship, was boarded by the 
commander of a Spanish guarda-costa, who insulted 
Jenkins with the most opprobrious invectives, and tore off 
one of his ears, which he bade him carry to the king, and 
tell him that the Spaniards would serve him in the same 
manner, if an opportunity should present itself. 

These outrages were loudly and justly complained of. 
Petitions from different parts of the kingdom were present- 
ed to the lower house ; and the relief of parliament was 
earnestly implored against these acts of violence. Sir John 
Barnard moved, that all the memorials and papers relative 
to the Spanish depredations should be laid before the com- 
mons ; and though sir Robert Walpole proposed some al- 
teration, he was obliged to comply. 

The minister, however, was either fond of peace, or 
afraid that war would injure his administration. Every 
endeavour, therefore, to prevent a rupture with Spain was 
industriously employed ; and, at last, a convention was 
concluded and ratified, by which the king of Spain 
^ly^a bound himself to pay, within a limited time, the 
^ ' sum of ninety-five thousand pounds, to be employ- 
ed in discharging the demands of British subjects on the 
crown of Spain. This measure, however, excited great 
indignation ; and Mr. William Pitt, who afterwards ren- 
dered himself so illustrious by his eloquence, his virtues, 
and his talents, declaimed against the convention, as inse- 
cure, unsatisfactory, and dishonourable to Great Britain. 

The Spaniards not fulfilling the agreement into which 

they had entered, letters of marque and reprisal were 

o-ranted against Spain ; a large fleet was assembled at 

Spithead ; the land forces were augmented ; and 

^1^ an embaro;o was laid on all merchant vessels. Af- 

ter another fruitless attempt to negotiate, war was 

at last formally declared. 



tSECllGE II. 401 

Admiral Vernon having affirmed, in the house of com- 
mons, that he could take Porto Bello, on the Spanish 
Main, with six ships, was despatched thither, and actually 
performed this hazardous service, almost without opposi- 
tion. On the arrival of this news, the two houses of par- 
liament joined in an address of congratulation on the suc- 
cess of his majesty's arms ; and the commons granted all 
the necessary supplies for carrying on the war. 

The minister, however, was become extremely unpopu- 
lar. War was not the sphere of sir Robert Walpole. 
Expensive expeditions were projected, without producing 
any corresponding effect ; and the enemy was unmolest- 
ed in proceeding from one port to another. In conse- 
quence, the minister was attacked in the house of com- 
mons with much asperity ; and though he contrived to re- 
tain his situation, it was evident that his administration 
was verging towards a close. 

Charles VI. emperor of Germany, and the last male 
sovereign of the house of Austria, died at Vienna, and was 
succeeded in his hereditary dominions by his eldest daugh- 
ter, the archduchess Maria Theresa, married to 
^ L^^ the grand duke of Tuscany ; but, though this prin- 
cess became queen of Hungary, by virtue of the 
pragmatic sanction, the restless ambition of her neigh- 
bours would not suffer her to enjoy those possessions 
which had been guarantied by all the powers of Europe. 
Frederick, the young and aspiring king of Prussia, was 
no sooner informed of the emperor's death, than he laid 
claim to Silesia, which he entered at the head of twenty 
thousand men. At the same time, the elector of Bavaria 
refused to acknowledge the archduchess as queen of Hun- 
gary and Bohemia, alleging, that he himself had legiti- 
mate pretensions to these dominions. Thus a war was 
kindled in Germany ; and the archduchess rriade requisi- 
tion of twelve thousand men, stipulated by treaty to be fur- 
nished her by England. 

In the present posture of affairs, men could be less con- 
veniently spared than money ; and sir Robert Walpole 
moved, that two hundred thousand pounds should be 
granted in aid to the queen of Hungary. The motion pass- 
ed, though not without opposition ; and the house resol- 
ved, that three hundred thous-and pounds should be granted 
to his majesty to enable him to assist the archduchess. 
34* 



403 HlSfORY OF ENGLAND. 

An attempt was made on Carthagena by sir Chaloner 
Ogle, and admiral Vernon ; but it failed of success, and 
was attended with the loss of many men^ the greatest part 
of whom were martyrs to the season and the climate. An- 
other unsuccessful expedition to Cuba finished the losses 
and the disgraces of this campaign. The nation cora- 
plained loudly of these miscarriages ; and the general dis- 
content had a great eifect on the election of members for 
the new parliament. Notwithstanding all the ministerial 
influences, the party of opposition evidently prevailed. 
The adherents of the minister began to tremble j and sir 
Robert Walpqle knew, that the majority of a single vote 
would commit him prisoner to the Tower. After endea- 
vouring in vain to bring over the prince of Wales to 
his party, he prudently meditated a retreat ; and , 1 . J" 
the king having adjourned both houses of parlia- 
ment, in the mean time sir Robert Walpole was created 
earl of Oxford, and resigned all his employments, after 
being a minister for twenty years. 

The change in the ministry was celebrated with public 
rejoicings ; yet, if the character of Walpole be candidly 
appreciated, we shall find less to censure than to praise. 
That he carried his measures by venal influence must be 
allowed, and this is the greatest stain that attaches to his 
character ; but those who suffered themselves to be cor- 
rupted were at least equally blameable. When, however, 
we contemplate his aversion to war, and his disinterested 
conduct, when so much was at his disposal, we cannot de- 
ny him the tribute of our applause. 

In the new administration, the duke of Newcastle and 
Mr. Pelham retained their former situations. Mr. 
Sandys succeeded sir Robert Walpole as chancel- ^^^^ 
lor of the exchequer; and the earl of Wilmington 
was appointed first lord of the treasury, in the room of the 
ex-minister. Lord Carteret became secretary of state for 
the foreign department ; and Mr. Pulteney, who refused 
any oflicial situation, was sworn of the privy-council, and 
soon after created ear! of Bath. 

It soon however appeared, that those who had declaim- 
ed the loudest for the liberties of their country, had been 
actuated solely by sordid or ridiculous motives. The peo- 
ple complained, that, instead of a change of men and 
measures, the old ministry was strengthened by this coali 



GEOltGiS It. 

tiou ; and they branded the new converts as apostates and 
betrayers of their country. 

The parhament voted one hundred thousand seamen 
and landsmen for the service of the year ; five hundred 
thousand pounds to the queen of Hungary ; and they pro- 
vided for the subsidies to Denmark and Hesse Cassel. 
As the king had determined to make a powerful diversion 
in the Netherlands, sixteen thousand men were embarked 
for the continent, under the command of the earl of Stair; 
and several thousand of Hanoverians, Hessians, and Aus- 
trians, were taken into British pay. 

The troops which the king of Great Britain had assem- 
bled in the Netherlands, marched for the Rhine, and en- 
camped at Hoech, on the river Maine. The duke of Cum- 
berland had already come to make his first campaign, and 
his majesty arrived in the camp on the 9th of June. The 
king found his army, amounting to about forty thousand 
men, in a critical situation ; and receiving intelligence that 
a reinforcement of twelve thousand Hanoverians and Hes- 
sians had reached Hanau, he resolved to march to that 
place, as well with a view to effect a junction, as to procure 
provisions for his forces. Soon after he had begun his 
march, he perceived the French drawn up in order of bat- 
tle at the village of Dettingen ; and he now found himself 
enclosed on all sides by the enemy, insomuch that 
a retreat was impossible. Thus environed, the 17^0 
confederates must either have fought at a great dis- 
advantage, or been obliged to surrender, if the duke dc 
Grammont had not rashly descended into the plain. The 
French charged with impetuosity, and the allies received 
the shock with great intrepidity and deliberation. The 
king himself displayed much personal courage ; and the 
duke of Cumberland was wounded. The French were at 
last repulsed, and obliged to cross the Maine, with the loss 
of five thousand men. 

The French, who had now become principals in the war, 
projected an invasion of Great Britain, and made prepara- 
tions for that purpose at Boulogne and Dunkirk, under the 
inspection of the young pretender ; but sir John Norris 
appearing with a fleet superior to that which was 
to convey the French forces, the expedition was ^'yfl 
laid aside for that season. However, in the Nether- 
lands, the enemy had considerable success under marshaj 



404 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

count Saxe, a natural son of Augustus, king of Poland, 
by the countess Koningsmark. 

In the next campaign, a veiy numerous army was as- 
sembled under marshal Saxe : and the French kingf and 
the dauphin arriving in the camp, the strong town 
-,^4^ of Tournay was invested. The duke of Cumber- 
land assumed the command of the allied army ; and 
though the confederates were greatly inferior in number 
to the enemy, they resolved to attempt the relief of Tour- 
nay. On the twenty-eighth of April, they came in sight 
of the French army, strongly encamped under cover of the 
village of Fontenoy. On the thirtieth of April, they at- 
tacked the French in their entrenchments ; and though 
the attempt was considered rash and imprudent, the allied 
army at first had the advantage ; but the destructive fire of 
the enemy's batteries, to which they were exposed both in 
front and flank at last obliged them to retreat. The allies 
lost about twelve thousand men, and the French nearly 
the same number ; but the consequences of this furious 
battle were all against the English and the allies. Tour- 
nay was compelled to surrender ; Ghent was surprised and 
taken ; Ostend, Dendermonde, Oudenarde, Newport, and 
Aeth, were successively reduced ; while the allied army 
lay entrenched behind the canal of Antwerp. 

The pretender, Charles, son of the chevalier de St. 
George, fired with ambition and the hope of ascending 
the throne of his ancestors, resolved to risk an invasion of 
Great Britain. Being furnished with a sum of money, and 
a supply of arms, he embarked on board of a small fri- 
gate, accompanied by the marquis of Tullybardine and a 
few Scottish and Irish adventurers, and was joined by the 
Elizabeth, a French ship of war, as his convoy. Their 
design was to sail round Ireland, and to land on the west- 
" ern coast of Scotland ; but being met by the Lion, an 
English ship of the line, an engagement ensued between 
the Lion and the Elizabeth, in which the latter was so 
disabled, that she was obliged to return to Brest ; and the 
young pretender was deprived of a great quantity of arms, 
and the assistance of about one hundred officers, who had 
embarked in that vessel for the expedition. Charles, how- 
ever, in the frigate, continued his course to the western 
isles of Scotland, and on the 27th of July, landed on the 



\ 




William III. 



Anne 




George L 




George II, 



George IIL 



GEORGE U. 405 

coast of Lochaber, where he was soon joined by twelve 
liundred men, under their respective chiefs or leaders. 

The administration was now sufficiently alarmed. The 
kmg was at this time in Hanover. The lords of the re- 
gency despatched a messenger to his majesty with the 
news, and offered a reward of thirty thousand pounds for 
the apprehension of Charles. Loyal addresses flocked in 
from all parts. The principal noblemen tendered their 
services to the government ; and the former discontents 
seemed to be forgotten in the fears of the present moment. 

The prince advanced to Perth, where the chevalier de 
St. George was proclaimed king of Great Britain ; and, 
the rebel army being considerably augmented, Charles, 
on the 16th of September, took possession of the town of 
Edinburgh. Here he caused his father again to be pro- 
claimed, and fixed his residence in the royal palace of 
Holyrood-house. 

Sir John Cope, commander in chief of the forces in 
North Britain, informed of these transactions, assembled 
all the troops he could muster, and, on the 20th of Sep- 
tember, encamped at Preston Pans, in the vicinity of Ed- 
inburgh. Next morning he was attacked by the pre- 
tender, with about two thousand four hundred highlanders, 
who charged sword in hand ; and in less than ten minutes, 
the king's troops were totally routed, with the loss of about 
five hundred men. By this victory, Charles was supplied 
with a train of field artillery, and found himself possessed 
of all Scotland, except the fortresses. 

The pretender continued to reside in the palace of Ho- 
lyrood-house ; but after being joined by the lords Kilmar- 
nock, Elcho, Balmerino, and many other persons of dis- 
tinction, and receiving considerable supplies from France, 
he resolved to make an irruption into England. Accord- 
ingly, on the 6th of November, he entered Carlisle, whence 
he advanced to Penrith, and continued his route through 
Lancaster and Preston to Manchester, where he was join- 
ed by about two hundred English Jacobites, under the 
command of colonel Townley. Crossing the Mersey at 
Stockport, Charles passed through Macclesfield and Con- 
gleton to Derby ; at which last place a council was held, 
and it was determined to return into Scotland. The re- 
treat was effected with all the artillery and military stores, 
ID spite of two hostile armies, one under general Wade, 



406 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

and the other under sir John Ligonier, stationed to in- 
tercept the rebels; but the most remarkable circumstance 
in this expedition was the great moderation and forbear- 
ance which the pretender's army exercised, in a country 
abounding with plunder. No violence or outrage was 
committed, notwithstanding the extremities to which they 
must have been reduced. 

The duke of Cumberland, being now invested with the 
chief command, set out for the north, and overtook the 
rear of the rebels at the village of Clifton, in the vicinity 
of Penrith, where a skirmish took place. Carlisle, which 
the pretender garrisoned, submitted to the duke in a few 
days. Charles, however, after levying heavy contribu- 
tions on Glasgow, which had displayed its attachment to 
the government, pi-oceeded to invest the castle of Stirling. 
General Hawley, commander of the king's forces in that 
quarter, marched to Falkirk, with the intention of bring- 
ing the rebels to an action. The latter, however, 
-J 1^^ began the attack on the seventeenth of January ; 
and their first volley threw the rayal forces into dis- 
order. The rebels following up their blow, the royal ar- 
my abandoned Falkirk, and retired in confusion to Edin- 
burgh, leaving part of the tents and artillery in the hands 
of the enemy. 

The duke of Cumberland having put himself at the head 
of the troops in Edinburgh, advanced to Aberdeen, the 
rebels fleeing all the way before him ; and after crossing 
the deep and rapid river Spey without opposition, he was 
at length informed, that the en-emy were encamped on the 
plains of Culloden, about nine miles from the royal army. 
On the 16th of April, the duke of Cumberland left Nairn 
early in the morning, and, after a march of nine miles, " 
perceived the enemy drawn up in order of battle, to the 
number of four thousand men. The royal army, which 
was much more numerous, was immediately formed into 
three lines. 

The action commenced about one o'clock in the after- 
noon. The artillery of the rebels was badly served, and 
did little execution ; but that of the king's troops made a 
dreadful havoc among the enemy. Impatient of this fire, 
about five hundred of the clans charged the duke's left 
wing with their usual impetuosity ; and one regiment was 
thrown into disorder by the attack of this body ; but two 



GEORGE II. 407 

battalions advancing from the second line, supported the 
first, and galled the enemy by a close and terrible dis- 
charge. At the same time, the dragoons under Hawley, 
and the Argyleshire militia, pulling down a park wall, 
which guarded the flank of the rebels, fell upon them, and 
made a horrible slaughter. In less than half an hour, they 
were totally routed, and the field covered with the slain. 

Thus, in one short hour, all the hopes and ambition of 
the pretender sunk together, and instead of thrones and 
sceptres, he saw himself a miserable outcast. To the 
eternal disgrace of the conquerors, they spread terror 
vi^herever they came ; the whole surrounding country was 
one sad scene of slaughter, desolation, and plunder; and, 
in a few days, there was neither man nor house to be seen 
within the circuit of fifty miles ! The unfortunate Charles 
was now chased by armed troops from hill to dale, from 
rock to cavern, and from mountain to mountain. At 
length, after many escapes and distresses, he found means 
to embark on board a small vessel, which conveyed him in 
safety to Morlaix, iij Bretagne. 

Punishment now awaited those who had escaped death 
in the field of battle. Seventeen rebel officers were exe- 
cuted at Kennington common, near London. Lords Kil- 
marnock, Balmerino, and Lovat, suffered decapitation bn 
Tower-hill, as did also Mr. Ratclifie, the titular earl of 
Derwentwater, on his former sentence in 1716. 

The French had fitted out two squadrons at Brest, one 
to make a descent on the British colonies in America, the 
other to assist the operations of their arms in the East In- 
dies. These squadrons, however, were intercepted and 
attacked by admirals Anson and Warren, and nine ships 
were taken, on board of which was found a great quantity 
of bullion, which was landed at S pithead, and conveyed 
in twenty wagons through the streets of London to the 
bank. Soon after, admiral Hawke defeated a 
French fleet, and took seven ships of the line and -. L.Z 
several frigates ; and, in the course of this year, 
the British cruisers were very successful in capturing the 
vessels of the enemy. 

At the close of the session of parliament, the king in- 
formed both houses that the preliminaries for a 
general peace had been actually signed at Aix-la- -tj^A 
Chapelle, by the ministers of Great Britain, France, 



408 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

nnd the United Provinces, on the basis of a general resti- 
tution of conquests. 

By the treaty of Aix-ia-Chapelle, in which the earl of 
Sandwich and sir Thomas Robinson were the British ple- 
nipotentiaries, it was stipulated, that the duchies of Parma, 
Placentia, and Guastalla, should be ceded to Don Philip, 
heir-apparent to the Spanish throne, and his heirs ; but, 
in case of his succeeding to the crown of Spain, that then 
these dominions should revert to the house of Austria : 
that the fortifications of Dunkirk to the sea should be de- 
molished ; that the king of Prussia should be secured in 
his possession of Silesia, which he had conquered ; and 
that the queen of Hungary should be guarantied in her 
hereditary dominions. No mention was made of the right 
of the English to sail in the American seas without being 
subject to a search, though this claim was the original 
cause of the difference between Great Britain and Spain. 
In short, it would be difficult to point out one advantage 
which this country gained by a war that had cost so many 
millions of money. 

As several nations on the continent had reformed their 

calendar according to the computation of Pope Gregory the 

Thirteenth, and much confusion in mercantile transactions 

had arisen, the parliament decreed, that the new year 

should begin on the first day of January, and that 

■I'^rk eleven intermediate nominal days, between the 

second and fourteenth of September, should this 

year be omitted, so that the day succeeding the second 

shouild be denominated and accounted the fourteenth. 

As soon as the French had recovered a little from the 
effects of the late war, they began to erect forts on the 
back of the British settlements in North America, and 
they also attempted to seize Nova-Scotia. The English 
government receiving only evasive answers from the court 
of France, on the subject of the encroachments in Ame- 
rica, ordered the governors of that countiy to expel the 
French by force from their settlements on the river Ohio. 
In consequence, colonel Washington, who afterwards 
made himself so famous in the cause of American inde- 
pendence, was despatched from Virginia with four hundred 
men, and occupying a post on the banks of the Ohio, was 
attacked by the French, who compelled him to surrender 
the fort. It was now evident that war was inevitable 



GEOtlGfi II. 409 

France continued to send reinforcements of men, and sup- 
plies of ammii-nition to Quebec, for the purpose of prose- 
cuting her ambitious projects ; and the ministry of Great 
Britain exhorted the governors of the i»i( vinces in North 
America to repei the incursions of the en^iuf. 

Admiral Boscawen being sent with a squadron of ships to 
protect the province of Nova-Scotia, captured two French 
vessels, the Alcide and the I^ys. About the same time, 
general Braddock, who h^id been sent to Virginia, took 
upon him the command of the forces destined to 
act against the French on the Ohio; and, on the i^re 
ninth of July, while advancing without proper 
caution, he was suddenly attacked by a general fire, both 
in front and flank, from an invisible enemy concealed be- 
hind the trees and bushes. The van-guard immediately 
fell back, and horror and confusion seized the ranks. The 
general himself was killed by a musket-shot ; and the few 
remaining soldiers instantly fled and left their baggage and 
ammunition in the hands of the enemy. 

Sir William Johnson, who had been appointed to the 
command of an expedition against Crown Point, being 
attacked by the French and Indians near Oswego, on the 
isouth-east side of the lake Ontario, defeated the enemy 
with great loss, but was unable to proceed on the ulterior 
object of his orders. 

tn this year happened a terrible catastrophe, which uni- 
ted all parties in one common sentiment of humaaity. 
On the first of November, an earthquake destroyed the 
greatest part of the city of Lisbon, with an immense num- 
ber of its inhabitants, while the survivors, destitute of the 
necessaries of life, were exposed to misery and famine. 
On this occasion, the parliament of Great Britain gene- 
rously voted one hundred thousand pounds for the distress- 
ed Portuguese. 

The next year, a treaty between his Britannic majesty 
and the king of Prussia was signed, by which they mutu- 
ally engaged not to suffer any foreign troops to 
enter Germany. On the other hand, the queen of ^'^' 
Hungary, though she owed every thing to Great 
Britain, concluded a treaty of mutual guarantee a.*nd sup- 
port with France; and she refused to his Britannic majesty 
the auxiliaries that she had agreed to furnish, on account 
of her dangerous neighbour, the kmg of Prussia. 
35 



410 HISTORY OP ENGtAND 

Mr. Pitt, and Mr. Legge, the most popular members of 
administration, disapproving of the political measures 
which had been adopted, as ruinous and absurd, were dis- 
missed from office ; and the seals were soon after trans- 
ferred from sir Thomas Robinson to Mr. Fox, whose abili- 
ties were universally acknowledged. 

The French equipped a formidable squadron of ships at 
Brest, and assembling a number of land forces and trans- 
ports, threatened England with an invasion. To meet the 
attack, several thousand of foreign mercenaries were call- 
ed upon to assist the country, on the presumption that the 
menaces of France would be carried into effect ; but, un- 
der the pretence of an invading armament, the French pre- 
pared an expedition, which too well succeeded. 

A formidable fleet sailed from Toulon with forces to in- 
vade Minorca ; and when admiral Byng, who had been 
sent out too late, arrival at Gibraltar, he found that the 
enemy had landed, and were besieging Fort St. Philip, 
which was defended by general Blakeney. The admiral 
being reinforced by a detachment from the garrison at 
Gibraltar, proceeded to Minorca, and perceived the Bri- 
tish colours still flying at the castle of St. Philip. How- 
ever, before a landing could be efl^ected, the French fleet, 
under La Galissoniere, appeared ; but though an engage- 
ment ensued, both commanders seemed averse to the con- 
tinuance of the battle ; and the French admiral, taking 
advantage of Byng's hesitation, sailed away. 

In a council of war, which was held immediately after 
this indecisive engagement, it was unanimously agreed, 
that it was impracticable to relieve the castle of St. Philip, 
and that it would be advisable to return to Gibraltar, which 
might requM-e immediate protection. General Blakeney 
receiving no assistance, at length capitulated on honoura- 
ble terms. 

The ministry, irritated against admiral Byng, who had 
complained that the English fleet had been too long de- 
layed., and that the ships under his command were unfit 
for service, took no steps to lessen the odium which popu- 
lar prejudice attached to him ; on the contrary, they were 
pleased to find the blame transferred from themselves, 
and that the admiral's imputed misconduct exnnerated 
them from censure. 

The unfortunate admiral was brought to trial, and the 



GEORGE ir. 411 

coiil*t determined, that during the engagement off 
Minorca, he did not use his utmost endeavours to i^^y 
take, seize, and destroy, the ships of the French 
king, nor exert his utmost power for the rehef of the castle 
of St. Philip ; and, that the punishment attached to this 
sentence was death ; but, as they believed that his miscon- 
duct arose neither from cowardice nor disaffection, they 
earnestly recommended him to mercy. 

All the friends and relations of the unhappy man exert- 
ed their influence to obtain a remission of his sentence, 
which popular clamour alone had extorted from his judges ; 
but, the sovereign was told, that the death of Byng was 
necessary to appease the fury of the people ; and, in spite 
of every application, a warrant was signed for his execu- 
tion. Thus abandoned to his fate, the unfortunate admi- 
ral was not wanting to himself on this trying occasion. 
Conscious of the uprightness of his intentions, he ad- 
vanced to the quarter-deck with a firm and deliberate 
step, and throwing down his hat, kneeled on a cushion, 
tied one handkerchief over his eyes, and dropped another 
as a signal to his executioners, when five balls passed 
through his body, and he fell dead without a struggle. 

Notwithstanding this sacrifice, the clamours against the 
administration continued to increase ; and the ministry 
found it necessary to admit into a participation of office 
Mr. Pitt and Mr. Legge, who were alike distinguished for 
their spirit and integrity ; but adverse as these two patriots 
were to his majesty's scheme of continental politics, they 
could not agree with their colleagues, and were dismissed 
from their situations. Addresses, however, poured in from 
all parts, in favour of the discarded minister ; and the king 
thought proper to reinstate Mr. Pitt in his former situation 
of secretary of state, and Mr. Legge in the office of chan- 
cellor of the exchequer. 

Public affairs were adverse at the commencement of this 
administration. An unsuccessful attempt was made against 
Rochefort ; but what was infinitely more disastrous, the 
duke of Cumberland, unable to contend with the great 
mihtary talents of marshal d'Etrees, was obliged to capi- 
tulate at Closter Seven, by which Hanover was left in the 
hands of the French, and an army of thirty-eight thousand 
Hanoverians were disarmed and disbanded. This inglo 
rjous convention seems to have been the crisis of the war. 



413 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

which, under the guidance of other ministers, produced 
the most splendid events. 

In America, after the return of lord Loudon to England, 
the chief command devolved on major general Abercrom- 
bie. On the 27th of July, Louisburgh and Cape Breton 
surrendered to the British under major-general Am- 
■tUez^ herst ; and Fort du Quesne, which the French had 
evacuated, was garrisoned under the name of Pitts- 
burgh, in compliment to the minister. The English also 
concluded a treaty with the Indian nations inhabiting the 
country between the Apalachian mountains and the lakes ; 
and such was the spirit of enterprise which now animated 
the cabinet, that the conquest of Canada was projected as 
the business of a single campaign. 

To accomplish this important object, major-general 
Wolfe, who had already distinguished himself by his mili- 
tary talents, was directed to undertake the siege of Que- 
bec, while general Amherst, after reducing Ticonderoga 
and Crown Point, was to cross the lake Champlain, and 
join Wolfe under the walls of the capital of Canada. 

The British forces under general Wolfe arrived in the 
river of St. Lawrence, and encamped near the falls of the 
Montmorenci. M. de Montcalm, the French commander, 
though his troops were superior in number to the invaders, 
had taken every precaution of defence, which the nature 
of the country afforded. The city of Quebec was tolera- 
bly fortified ; and Montcalm, having reinforced the troops 
of the colony, with this army occupied an advantageous 
situation from the river St. Charles to the falls of the 
Montmorenci. 

On the last day of July, the British general made dis- 
position for an assault, under cover of the fire from the 
ships in the river; but the English grenadiers, impetu 
ously attacking the enemy's entrenchments in disorder, 
were repulsed with great loss, and Wolfe was obliged to 
retreat. 

This mortifying check preyed on the spirits of the gal- 
lant Wolfe, who could not brook the most distant prospect 
of censure or disgrace, and who declared that he would 
rather die than fail of ultimate success. At length, a new 
plan of operations was concerted for landing the troops in 
the night within a league of Cape Diamond, in hopes of 
ascending the heights of Abraham, which rise abruptly 



GEORGE It. 413 

with a steep ascent from the banks of the river, that they 
might gain possession of the grounds on the back of the 
city, where it was but shghtly fortified. 

This plan was put in execution ; and the troops were 
disembarked during the night with secrecy and silence ; 
but the precipice still remained to be ascended. With 
infinite labour and difficulty, the troops reached the sum- 
mit of the heights of Abraham, and the general drew 
them up in order of battle as they arrived. When M. de 
Montcalm understood that the English had gained these 
heights, he found himself under the necessity of risking 
an engagement, in order to save the town, and accordingly 
advanced his men with great intrepidity. A furious con- 
test ensued, and general Wolfe, who stood in the front of 
the line, early received a shot in the wrist, to which he 
paid little regard; but, advancing at the head of the gre- 
nadiers, another ball pierced his breast, and compelled him 
to quit the scene of action. As he reclined on the arm of 
an officer, he was roused by the exclamation, " they run ! 
they run !" " Who run '?" said the brave Wolfe, with great 
eagerness. " The French," replied the officer. " Then," 
said he, "I die contented;" and almost immediately ex- 
pired in the arms of victory. 

The French general, M. de Montcalm, was also mor- 
tally wounded in the battle, and died soon after ; but the 
advantage remained wholly on the side of ihe English. 
Quebec vras obliged to surrender, and at length the con- 
quest of all Canada was completed, by the capture of 
Montreal under general Amherst. 

Success indeed attended the British arms in every quar- 
ter of the globe. Fort Louis and the isle of Goree, in 
Africa, submitted to the British ; as did also Guadaloupe, 
in the West Indies. Cherbourg w^as taken by commodore 
Howe, and Havre de Grace bombarded by admiral Rodney. 

In the Mediterranean, M. de la Clue was defeated by 
admiral Boscawen, who took four of his ships ; and ano- 
ther fleet under M. de Conflans was attacked off Quibe- 
ron bay by sir Edward Hawke, w^ien a furious battle en- 
sued, and night alone saved the French from total 
destruction. In this last engagement, two of the "t'^' 
enemy's best ships were sunk, one struck her co- 
lours, two were stranded and destroyed, and the S'^leil 
Royal, the flag-ship of the French admiral, was burnt bv 
35* 



414 HISTORr OP ENGLAND. 

her own crew, to prevent her from faUing into the hands of 
the Enghsh. 

In Germany the war was carried on with great vigour, 
and the glory of the British arms raised to the highest 
pitch ; and though the empress of Russia had acceded 
to the alliance concluded between the courts of Versailles 
and Vienna, the king of Prussia, aided by his Britannic 
majesty, continued to make head against the numerous 
armies of those powers. 

Such was the general posture of affairs, when George 
11. died, on the twenty-fifth day of October, in the 
^ Lf,^'i seventy-seventh year of his age, and the thirty- fourth 
year of his reign. He was at his palace of Ken- 
sington : and having risen at his usual hour, he observed 
to his attendants, that as the w^eather was fine, he would 
walk out. In a few minutes after, being left alone, he was 
heard to fall ; and, being lifted on the bed, he desired, in 
a faint voice, that the princess Amelia might be called ; 
biit before she could arrive, he expired. 

George the Second was in his person rather below the 
middle size. In his disposition he is said to have been 
prone to anger, yet soon appeased ; in other respects, he 
was mild and humane. He was personally brave, and 
fond of war as a soldier. Though his foreign politics can- 
not be commended, his internal government deserves un- 
qualified praise. 

In this reign, the hopes of the Stuart party and family 
being baffled, and the legitimacy of the Guelphs generally 
recognised, the constitutional government, as adjusted at 
the Revolution, began to display its excellencies and faults, 
and to acquire its full force. 

Parliaments were regularly convened, for the despatch 
of ail business connected with the improvement of the 
laws, and the regulation of the revenue ; and the preroga- 
tives of the sovereign, and the rights of the legislature, 
were duly recognised and balanced. 

The king chose his ministers, and these were amenable 
to parliament ; while the latter was kept in good humour 
by the influence and patronage of the ministers. The of- 
fice of prime-minister began now to distinguish our coun- 
cfls. The first who merited the name was sir Robert 
Walpole, a favourite confidential minister of George the 
First and Second ; and the nation under him and his sue- 



OEORQE 11. 4] 5 

cessors, presented the spectacle of a sovereign contented 
with the splendour of his crown, and with the maiiifesta- 
tion of his power, under the advice and responsibility of 
his ministers ; of a parliament whose majorities were go- 
verned by the influence of the minister, and the modera- 
tion and plausibility of his measures ; and of a people 
obedient to the laws, the operation of which they had the 
power of controlling by juries formed from their own body. 
Such a state of society continued through an entire ge- 
neration, begat confidence at home and respect abroad. 
The public securities rose in value, commerce increased, 
domestic improvements were made, and the capabilities of 
the nation in arts, arms, and industry, began to develope 
themselves, and prepare the way for the more decisive 
events of the succeeding reign. 



CONTINUATION, 



FROM 

THE ACCESSION OF GEORGE III. 

TO THE 

COROITikTIOST OF G-SOXIGS ZV. 



CHAP. XXIH. 

The reign of George III 

On the decease of George 11., the eldest son of Frede- 
ric, prince of Wales, succeeded his grandfather, 
under the most favourable auspices ; as the third , 1^.^ 
of his name and family. 

This young and native sovereign, whose character and 
affability of deportment rendered him the object of esteem, 
was greeted by the enthusiasm of the people. *' Born and 
educated in this country," said his majesty, in his first 
speech to parliament, " I glory in the name of Briton." 

The parliament^ with the general approbation, voted 
the clear yearly sum of £800,000 for the maintenance of 
his majesty's household, and the support of the royal dig- 
nity, in lieu of the civil-list revenues, which hud been for- 
merly appropriated for the sovereigns of this country. This 
was followed by a wise and liberal regulation, by which 
the judges were rendered independent of the crown, and 
which, as it passed on the recommendation of the king, 
justly gained his majesty universal applause. 

The war, however, was prosecuted with unabated vigour. 
The island of Belleisle surrendered to commodore Keppel 
and general Hodgson. In the East-Indies, the French 
were divested of all their possessions of importance ; and 
Pondicherry, their capital settlement, was reduced by co- 
lonel Coote and admiral Stevens. In the West Indies, 
Martinico, and some other islands, were added to the list 
of British conquests. 

During these transactions, Mr. Pitt, with that sagacity 
and intuitive foresight which characterize an able states- 
man, anticipating the hostile designs of Spain, proposed 
an immedif *e declaration of war against that kingdom ; 



GEORGE III. 417 

but this measure being opposed by his colleagues in office, 
and iiiiding that the earl of Bute, who had heeu governor 
to his majesty, had acquired an ascendancy in the royal 
favour, he disdained to act a subordinate part, resigned 
the seals, and retired with a pension and a peerage for his 
lady. 

Lord Bute, who had been previously appointed one of 
the principal secretaries of state, was now supposed to in- 
fluence the decisions of government ; but, before the end 
of the year, the ministry found it necessary to adopt the 
measure recommended by Mr. Pitt, and to declare war 
against Spain. Havanna, Manilla, and all the Philippine 
islands, became, in consequence, the reward of British va- 
lour. 

Amidst these successes, however, the restoration of peace 
was equally desired by the victors and the vanquished ; 
and after some time had been spent in negotiation, a defi- 
nitive treaty was signed at Paris on the 10th of 
,lpo February, and peace solemnly proclaimed in Lon- 
don, on the 22d of the following month. By this 
treaty, Great Britain obtained the extensive province of 
Canada, East Florida, West Florida, the Grenadas in th^^ 
West Indies, and some inferior acquisitions ; but restored 
all the other conquests made during the war. These terms 
were considered in England as degrading to the nation ; 
and clamours were raised against the administration of lord 
Bute, who had never been a favourite with the people. 

About this time too, the daring spirit of John Wilkes, 
Esq., Avho sat in parliament for Aylesbury, contributed to 
hasten the downfall of the Premier. This man published 
a paper called " The North Briton," in which he attacked 
the minister with great asperity, and indulged in the gross- 
est scurrility against the whole Scottish nation. Churchill, 
the poet, employed his satirical powers in the same cause ; 
and the ferment excited by these two able, but profligate 
characters, was so great, that the earl of Bute thought 
proper to resign his office of first lord of the treasury, in 
which he was succeeded by Mr. George Grenville. 

One of the first acts of the new minister was the prose- 
cution of Mr. Wilkes, who, in the North Briton, No. 45, 
had asserted, that his majesty's speech, which he aflibcted 
to consider as the minister's, contained a falsehood. In 
consequence of this violation of all decorum, Mr. Wilke? 



418 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

was apprehended by virtue of a general warrant, his pa- 
pers were seized, and he was committed to the tower. In 
the court of common pleas, however, Mr. Wilkes was ac- 
quitted of the charge exhibited against him ; and lord 
chief justice Pratt declared, that general warrants were il- 
legal. 

Mr. Grenville possessed integrity and abilities, but he 
wanted a sound discriminating judgment. In order to 
raise a revenue from the American colonies, he projected 
a stamp-act, which, being resisted by the Americans, was 
afterwards repealed ; but the attempt and its failure laid 
the foundation for that fatal contest, which at length ter- 
minated in the independence of the American colonies. 

The name of the princess of Wales having been 
omitted in the bill for appointing a regency, in con- , 1^ * 
sequence of his majesty's illness, the king, after re- 
covering from his indisposition, determined to change his 
ministers ; and the marquis of Rockingham was placed at 
the head of a new administration. The highly respecta- 
ble character of the marquis, however, could not secure the 
new ministers a continuance in office. Possessing a great 
share of moderation in principles, their opponents effectu- 
ally made head against them ; and the duke of Grafton 
became first lord of the treasury ; while Mr. Pitt, who was 
now raised to the dignity of earl of Chatham, accepted the 
office of privy seal. 

Mr. Charles Townshend, the chancellor of the 
exchequer, who possessed eminent talents for busi- -I'-yr^A 
ness, but too much versatility of disposition, unhap- 
pily revived the design of taxing America, though taxation 
and representation cannot constitutionally be separated ; 
and while the earl of Chatham was confined by extreme 
illness, he brought in a bill for imposing a duty on tea, 
and some otherarticles imported into the colonies. Against 
this design, the Americans formed a general combination 
for not receiving any of the commodities thus taxed, from 
the mother country ; and, the acts were again repealed, 
except as far as related to the duties on tea. This con- 
cession, however, gave little satisfaction to the Americans, 
who considered the late acts as unconstitutional, and pro- 
posed a general union of the colonies for defending their 
natural rights. 

Meanwhile Mr. Townshend died, and his place of 



GEORGE 111. 419 

chancellor of the exchequer was filled by lord North. Some 
other changes also took place ; and the earl of Chat* 
ham, who had long been treated with disregard, either on 
account of his infirmities, or his uncomplying disposition, 
resigned his office of privy-seal, and from this time lived 
unconnected with the aftairs of government, though he 
frequently took an active part in the interesting debates 
which agitated this period. 

The discontents which had been produced in 
,l,Kj-o America by the insidious, not to say unjust designs 
of the ministry, were about to break out into a 
flame, that spread into a general conflagration. Laws hav- 
ing been passed for quartering troops in the colonies, and 
for rendering the governors of the different provinces solely 
dependant on the crown, the Americans, in order to show 
their aversion to the measures of the British government, 
and their determination to resist, destroyed a large quanti- 
ty of tea at Boston, and obliged ships laden with the same 
commodity to return from other places without landing 
their cargoes. In consequence of these proceedings, acts 
were passed for shutting up the port of Boston, and for 
altering the constitution of Massachusetts bay and Quebec. 
This violent stretch of power excited the utmost indig- 
.lation in America ; and the colonies entered into a solemn 
league and covenant to suspend all commercial intercourse 
with Great Britain, till the obnoxious acts were repealed. 
Meanwhile, measures were adopted for holding a general 
congress of the American colonies; and a bold and spirit- 
ed remonstrance, soliciting a redress of grievances, was 
addressed to the king. All remonstrances and petitions^ 
however, being equally disregarded, and eveiy avenue to 
accommodation, except by implicit submission, shut up, 
the Americans determined to have recourse to arms, as the 
only means left for defending their unalienable rights. 
On the 19th of April, general Gage, commander in 
A. D. ^^^®^' having been informed that the Americans 
1775 ^^^ collected military stores at Concord, sent a de- 
tachment to seize them. The detachment was at- 
tacked at Lexington, and many were killed on both sides; 
but the loss on the side of the British far exceeded that of 
their opponents. 

The torch of civil war being thus Hghted up, the colo- 
nists flew to arms as if by concert, and assumed the title 



4S0 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

of " the United States of America," whose affairs were to 
be managed by a congress. This body of representatives 
instantly passed resolutions for raising an army, for issuing 
a paper currency for its payment, and for prahibiting all 
importations to those places which still remained faithful 
in their allegiance to the crown of Great Britain. 

A few weeks after this engagement, the British army in 
America was strengthened by a large reinforcement, which 
arrived from England, under the command of gener.'ds 
Howe, Burgoyne, and Clinton. Martial law Avas now 
proclaimed ; but the congress was not easily intimidated ; 
and voting that the compact between the cr»wn and the 
inhabitants of Massachusetts Bay, was dissolved, they re- 
commended that province to resume its chartered rights. 

As further hostilities were now mutually expected, the 
Americans, that they might secure Charlestown, sent a 
detachment of men at night to erect some considerable 
Works on Bunker's Hill. When these operations were 
discovered in the morning, a heavy fire commenced from 
the ships ; and the Americans were with difficulty driven 
from their entrenchments by generals Howe and Pigot. 
In this action, which was very severe, the loss of the Bri- 
tish in killed and wounded amounted nearly to half 
^'jry^ their number, and included many officers. After 
this affair, the colonists threw up works on another 
hill opposite ; and the British troops were closely invested 
in the peninsula. 

The general congress published a very animated decla- 
ration, in which their reasons for taking up arms were as- 
signed, and the objects for which they contended were 
distinctly pointed out. They also appointed George 
Washington general and commander in chief of the Ame- 
rican forces. This gentleman had acquired some experi- 
ence in the last war, when he commanded different bodies 
of provincials ; and his conduct and military skill fully 
justified the partiality of his countrymen. Another peti- 
tion to the king was also voted by congress, in which they 
earnestly beseeched his majesty to adopt some method of 
putting a stop to the unhappy contest between Great Bri- 
tain and the colonies ; but this petition, though presented 
by Mr. Penn, late governor, and one of the proprietors of 
Pennsylvania, did not obtain an answer. 

In the mean time, the Americans, prepared for ev*ry 



GEORGE lit. 421 

events and animated with the enthusiasm of a people con- 
tending for liberty, no longer confined them'selves to de- 
fensive operations. Ticonderoga and Crown Point had 
already been taken by a party of Americans ; and it was 
determined to fit out an expedition against Canada, un- 
der generals Montgomery and Arnold ; but in an attempt 
against Quebec, Montgomery fell, and Arnold, after being 
dangerously wounded, was compelled to make a precipi- 
tate retreat. 

The state of the royal army at Boston had now become 
deplorable. By a masterly stroke, Washington compel- 
led the British to abandon the town ; and all the English 
troops, with such loyalists as chose to accompany 
them, were precipitately embarked and conveyed ^X^yA 
to Halifax. Next day, general Washington enter- 
ed Boston in triumph. 

Soon after, congress, in a solemn declaration, withdrew 
all allegiance from the king of Great Britain, and assumed 
for the colonies the style and character of " Free and In- 
dependent States." They also published articles of con- 
federation and perpetual union between the provinces ; 
while in proportion as the prospect of bringing them to 
submission was lessened, the arrogance and infatuation of 
the British ministry, at the head of whom was lord North, 
seemed to increase. 

An unsuccessful attempt was made upon Charlestown, 
in which the English suffered severely ; but about the same 
time, general Howe obtained possession of New-York; 
and general Clinton and sir Peter Parker took Rhode 
Island. General Howe, and his brother, admiral lord 
Howe, were regarded with partiality by the Americans ; 
and some overtures of reconciliation were made by the 
two brothers ; but the manifesto which they published 
offered only pardon to the colonists, and produced no 
beneficial purpose. 

The ill success of the Americans, however, was pro- 
ductive of those internal effects which operate as strongly 
as external force ; and at this period, if terms of conces- 
sion had been offered by Great Britain, the constitutional 
supremacy of the mother country might probably have 
been acknowledged ; but the time of conciliation was ne- 
glected, and the infatuation of ministers prevailed. 

In the next campaign, the Americans were defeated by 
36 



422 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

general Howe in the battle of Brandy wine ; and the Eng 

lish entered Philadelphia in triumph. On the othei 

■t'fyiyj hand, general Burgoyne, who had set out from 

Quebec with an army often thousand men, in order 

to form a line of communication between New- York and 

Canada, after driving the Americans before him for some 

time, was at last surrounded at Saratoga by general Gates, 

and obliged to lay down his arms. 

The success of the Americans now determined the court 

of France to declare in favour of the new republic ; 

,1^Q and so gloomy was the prospect of Great Britain, 

that ministers sent commissioners to America to 

treat of peace ; but this attempt at conciliation was of no 

essential service. 

Hostilities commenced with France, by a naval engage- 
ment between admiral Kepple and count d'Orvilliers ; and 
victory would have been decisive in favour of the British, 
if sir Hugh Palliser had obeyed the signals of the admi- 
ral. Both officers were tried before a court-martial. Pal- 
liser, though found guilty, was only slightly censured ; 
while admiral Kepple was honourably acquitted. 

Meanwhile, Pondicherry in the East, and the island of 
St. Lucia in the West Indies, were captured by the Eng- 
lish ; but Dominica, St. Vincent, and Grenada, were taken 
by the French, who assisted the Americans with a fleet 
commanded by the count d'Estaing. In attempt- 
|l«,q ing the relief of Grenada, an indecisive -engage- 
ment took place between admiral Byron with a 
fleet of twenty-one ships, and the count d'Estaing, who 
had twenty-five or twenty-six ships of the line, besides 
twelves frigates, under his command. After this action, 
the French admiral, in conjunction with the Americans, 
attempted the reduction of Savannah, but was frustrated 
by general Prevost. In Europe, the French made a de- 
scent with a considerable force on Jersey, but were re- 
Dulsed by the promptitude of major Pearson, the English 
commandant, who fell in the moment of victory, at the 
head of his small corps. 

Before the close of this session, his majesty announced 
„o parliament that Spain had joined the alliance against 
England ; and this new enemy having joined the French 
with thirty ships of the line, the combined fleets of those 
two neighbouring powers for some time rode triumphant 



GEORGE III. 423 

in the British channel, and menaced the Enghsh coast 
with impunity. Spain also took New-Orleans on the 
Mississippi, and closely invested Gibraltar. 

Admiral sir George Rodney, being appointed to the 
chief naval command in the West Indies, obtained 
a complete victory over a Spanish fleet of eleven i^orj 
sail off Cape St. Vincent ; and after relieving Gib- 
raltar, he proceeded to execute his ulterior orders, and had 
three indecisive engagements with the French fleet in the 
West Indies. 

In June, the same year, happened one of the most 
dreadful riots in London which history records. It arose 
from the fanaticism of an association of protestant secta- 
ries, who fancied that religion was in danger, on account 
of some just and equitable indulgences which the legisla- 
ture had recently granted to the Roman catholics. A mob, 
collected by a procession of this association, pulled down 
or burnt several popish chapels, broke open many of the 
prisons, and liberated both felons and debtors. In a few 
days, however, the riots were quelled, and lord George 
Gordon, the president of the association, was committed 
to the tower. 

From the agitations of war and faction, we turn with 
pleasure to the progress made by science and the arts, 
under the munificent patronage of George the Third, 
Byron, who was commissioned in 1764 to explore the 
Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and circumnavigate the globe, 
corrected by his observations the errors of former charts, 
and discovered several islands in the South Pacific. A 
few years after, captain Wallis sailed on a similar expedi- 
tion, and, on the 19th of June, 1767, perpetuated his name 
by the discovery of Otaheite, (or King George's Island,) in 
the South Pacific, and of other islands in the same ocean. 
Carteret also traversed the Pacific, and circumnavigated 
the globe. Each of these navigators contributed an ac- 
cession of geographical knowledge. 

To captain James Cook, however, more than to any 
other individual since the time of Columbus, we are in- 
debted for extending the boundaries of geographical sci- 
ence. In his first voyage to the Pacific ocean, in 1770, 
he discovered the Society Islands, determined the insula- 
rity of New Zealand, and explored the eastern coast ot 
New-Holland. In his second voyage, in 1773, he disco 



424 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

vered New Caledonia, the island of Georgia, and an un- 
known coast, which he named Sandwich Land. In 1776, 
another voyage of discovery being proposed by the govern- 
ment, the Resolution and Discovery were fitted out for 
that purpose, and captains Cook and Clerke were appoint- 
ed to this expedition. This last voyage was particularly 
distinguished by the extent and importance of its disco- 
veries. Besides several small islands in the South Pacific, 
Cook discovered the group of islands called the Sand- 
wich Islands, explored the western coast of America from 
the latitude of forty-three to seventy degrees north, and 
ascertained the proximity of the two great continents of 
Asia and America. In September, 1780, the Resolution 
and Discovery returned to England from this voyage round 
the world, but to the grief of every person who respected 
worth and talents, without captain Cook, who had been 
unfortunately killed by the natives of Owyhee, one of the 
Sandwich Islands which he had discovered. 

This year was also memorable for the armed neutrality- 
entered into by the northern powers for the purpose of re- 
sisting the English in exercising the right of searching- 
neutral vessels, on the principle that " free bottoms make 
free goods." It being discovered that the States General 
had concluded a treaty with the American government, 
England declared war against Holland. 

The Dutch island of St. Eustatius, and the settlements 
of Demarara, Berbice, and Issequibo, submitted to the 
British ; and a severe engagement took place between 
admiral sir Hyde Parker and the fleet of Holland ofi" the 
Dogger Bank, but without any decisive issue on either side. 

In America, alternate successes and reverses attended 
the arms of Britain ; but even victory was fatal to Eng- 
iand, while defeats were doubly injurious, and rendered 
the colonists certain of a prosperous issue. Indeed, the 
cause of Britain in this contest with her American colonies 
daily declined, and became more desperate. Earl Cora- 
waliis, who had distinguished himself on various occasions, 
was at length surrounded by General Washington, 
^l,^' assisted by the marquis de la Fayette, and obliged 
to surrender the whole of his forces, amounting to 
seven thousand men, to the combined French and Ameri- 
can army, at York Town, in Virginia ; an event which 



GEORGE III. 425 

terminated the hopes of the British government in Ameri- 
ca, and ended the war. 

About the same time, St. Eustatius was recovered from 
the English ; and the Spaniards made thems&lves masters 
of West Florida. The sieo-e of Gibraltar was also carried 
on with vigour ; but the place was very ably defended by 
the heroic governor, general Elliot. 

In the East Indies, Hyder Ally, the confederate of 
France, took Arcot by assault, and cut to pieces, or made 
prisoners of a detachment under colonel Baillie. Sir Eyre 
Coote, however, defeated Hyder in two subsequent en- 
gagements, relieved Vellore, and retrieved the fortune of 
the war in the Carnatic. 

After the surrender of earl Cornwallis to general Wash- 
ington, the influence of the British ministry was at an end ; 
and a change of measures appearing absolutely necessary, 
a complete revolution in the cabinet took place on 
the twenty-seventh of March, under the auspices i^qq 
of the marquis of Rockingham, who was appointed '^ 
first lord of the treasury. The earl of Shelburne and Mr. 
Fox were appointed secretaries of state. 

Peace was now ardently desired by all ranks of people 
in this countiy j and the new ministry consented that the 
independence of America should be allowed, and entered 
into measures for effectuating a general treaty of pacifica« 
tion. For this purpose, Mr. Grenville was sent to Paris, 
• with full powers to treat with all the belligerent nations, 
and orders were despatched to the commanders in chief in 
America, to acquaint them with the pacific views of the 
British cabinet, and with the offer of independence to the 
United States. 

After the capture of lord Cornwallis and his army, the 
English suffered a series of losses in America. The French 
took Nevis, St. Christophers, and Montserrat ; the Baha- 
ma islands surrendered to the Spaniards ; and Jamaica 
was threatened by the fleets of Spain and France, on board 
of which was an army of twenty thousand men. This for- 
midable armament, however, was prevented from uniting 
by the promptitude and bravery of admiral Rodney, who 
engaged and totally defeated the French under count de 
Grasse, before it could form a junction with the Spanish 
fleet. The French admiral, in the Ville de Paris of 12G 
guns, was taken, with two seventy- four sun ships, and one 
36* 



426 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

of sixty- four guns. Two other ships of the line were lost 
in the action ; and a few days after, sir Samuel Hood cap- 
tured two more French ships of the line and two frigates. 
This decisive and glorious victory, which was achieved on 
the 12th of April, put a stop to the intended project against 
Jamaica ; and admiral Rodney, in reward for his services, 
was gratified with a peerage and a pension. 

The valour of the British arms wa^ most remarkably 

displayed at Gibraltar, where the English, under that 

brave veteran general Elliot, acquired immortal honour, 

and converted one of the most formidable attacks that had 

^ . ever been made in the history of sieges, to the de- 

^A ' struction of the assailants, and the frustration of all 
ITj^b ^^^® hopes of the enemy. The enthusiasm and gal 
lantry of Elliot and his garrison were emulated by 
lord Howe and the fleet. To the admiration of all Eu- 
rope, that brave admiral, with thirty-four sail of the line, 
passed the straits in the face of a superior enemy, and 
threw succours into the fortress. 

This was the last transaction of importance during the 
continuance of the war in Europe ; and thus the military 
career of Britain, after her repeated misfortunes, termi- 
nated with great splendour. All the belligerent powers, 
were now inclined to listen to overtures of pacification. 
The happy prospect, however, of peace and prosperity 
v/as obscured for a time by the death of the marquis of 
Rockingham, from whose administration the nation had 
formed great expectations. He was succeeded by the earl 
of Shelburne, and Mr. Fox resigned his office of secretary 
of the northern department. 

The new ministers, however, continued the negotiation 
fcr peace ; and as the independence of America was vir- 
tually recognised, the war with the colonies had in fact 
terminated. At length, on the 30th of November, 1782, 
provisional articles, between England and America, were 
signed at Paris. By this treaty, the sovereignty and inde 
pendence of the United States were fully acknowledged 
So great, indeed, were the concessions of ministers on 
this occasion, that they neglected the interests of the loy- 
alists in America, whose estates had been confiscated, and 
who were thus thrown on the generosity of the British. 

In our treaties with the French, the Dutch, and the 
Spaniards, the same improvident facility was apparent 



GEORGE III. ^7 

and these treaties, when submitted to parliament, 
extorted the severest animadversions. By this ca- 1700 
lamitous war, Great Britain lost the best part of 
her transatlantic colonies, and, besides many thousands of 
valuable lives, expended or squandered nearly 150 millions 
of money. The address of thanks for the peace was 
carried in the house of lords by a majority of 72 to 59, 
but lost in the house of commons by a majority of 224 
to 208. 

It was now discovered that Mr. Fox, in his animosity to 
the earl of Shelburne, had formed a coalition with his for- 
mer political antagonist, lord North. This unnatural and 
unprincipled coalition, which excited general indignation, 
was defended by Mr. Fox on the strange plea, that the 
question of American independence being now at rest, he 
had no desire to perpetuate his enmity to a statesman 
whom he had found honourable as an adversary, and of 
whose openness and sincerity as a friend he had no doubt. 

Their united opposition prevailed, and a change took 
^lace in the ministry. The duke of Portland was placed 
Tit the head of the treasury, lord John Cavendish was made 
chancellor of the exchequer, and lord North and Mr. Fox 
were appointed joint secretaries of state. The coalition 
administration became the theme of universal and pas- 
sionate execration ; and when public confidence is once 
lost, it can never be completely regained. 

Mr. Pitt, the son of th-e immortal earl of Chatham, and 
who afterwards rivalled his father's glory, made a motion 
for a parliamentary reform, and proposed to add one hun- 
dred members to the counties, and abolish a proportiona- 
ble number of the obnoxious boroughs. This plan, though 
certainly the most judicious that has yet been proposed 
for the independence of parliamentary representation, was 
negatived by a large majority. 

Soon after the meeting of parliament in November, Mr. 
Fox introduced a bill for regulating the affairs of the East- 
India Company. This famous bill proposed to deprive 
the directors and proprietors of the entire administration, 
not only of their territorial, but also of their commercial 
afiairs, and to vest the management and direction of them 
in seven commissioners named in the bill, and irremovable 
by the crown, except in consequence of an address of 
either house of parliament. It passed through the Icwei 



428 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

house by a great majority, but was lost in the upper, after 
very anim-ated debates, in which its unconstitutional prin 
ciples were fully exposed. 

The king, being informed of the nature and tendency of 
this bill, considered himself duped and deceived ; and the 
coalition ministiy, which had been deservedly unpopular, 
were suddenly dismissed. Mr. Pitt, then a very young man, 
was declared first lord of the treasuiy, and chancellor of 
the exchequer ; the marquis of Caermarthen, and Mr. 
Thomas Town shend, created lord Sydney, were nominated 
secretaries of state ; and lord Thurlow was appointed to 
the office of lord-chancellor. The intelligence of this 
change was received by the nation vt^ith transports of joy. 

The discarded ministers, however, still maintained their 
influence in the house of commons ; and the singular 
spectacle was exhibited of a minister retaining his situation 
in defiance of the votes of the commons, and of an oppo- 
sition restraining the power of the executive, by prohibiting 
the issuing of payments from the bank or the exchequer, 
for the public service. At length, after strong and repeated 
1^ 7 contests between the two factions, during which 

^(. the miniser found himself frequently in a minority, 
i^QA the parliament was dissolved by proclamation, and 
a new one convened. So complete was the rout of 
the coalition party, that of one hundred and sixty mem- 
bers who lost their seats at the general election, nearly the 
whole were the friends either of Mr. Fox or lord North. 

The arrangements of a plan for the future government 
of India, was the most important business to which the at- 
tention of the new parliament was first directed. The bill 
which Mr. Pitt introduced for that purpose, was carried 
through the house of commons by a great majority ; and 
in the upper house, though strongly opposed, it passed 
with a few dissenting votes. 

In the next session, Mr. Pitt brought forward his plan 
for a reform in the representation, varying in some 
\ly^K measure from his former project, but in every re- 
spect temperate and judicious. The result of this 
plan was to give one hundred members to the popular in- 
terest, and to extend the elective franchise to more than 
one hundred thousand persons, who, by the existing laws, 
were excluded from voting for members of parliament. 
After a debate of considerable length, in which Mr. Foa 



GKORGE III. 4^9 

bestov/ed on the plan a just and liberal tribute of praise, 
the bill was rejected by a majority of 274 to 174. Mr. Pitt 
was equally unsuccessful in attempting to settle the com- 
merce of England and Ireland on a mutual and equitable 
footing. His propositions, which were amended in the 
house of lords, passed in England with difficulty ; but, in 
the Irish parliament, they were rejected with marked dis- 
approbation. 

Among the various measures agitated by parliament du 
ring the next session, was a plan for extinguishing the na 
tional debt. This celebrated plan was founded on 
a report framed by a select committee, who had i^o^j 
been appointed to examine the annual income and 
expenditure of the state. By this report it appeared, that 
the public income for the year 1785 exceeded the annual 
expenditure by £900,000. This surplus the minister pro- 
posed to increase to one million, and to appropriate the 
annual sum of one million to the liquidation of the national 
debt. This annual million Mr. Pitt proposed to be vested 
in the hands of certain commissioners, to be by them ap- 
plied regularly in the purchase of stock. In the progress 
of the bill, Mr. Fox suggested an amendment, which was 
gratefully received by the minister — that whenever a new 
loan should in future be made, the commissioners should 
be empowered to accept of the loan, or such proportion 
of it as should be equal to the cash then in their hands ; 
a«nd that the interest and douceur annexed to it should be 
applied to the purposes of the sinking-fund. The bill finally 
passed, with great and deserved approbation ; and this 
measure has been in general pursued under almost every 
change of circumstances, and amidst unexampled diffi- 
culties. 

During the following year, the republican party in Hol- 
land having obtained an accession of strength, and being 
secretly favoured by the couit of France, renoun- 
ced the authority of the Stadtholder, under the pre- ^I^qZ 
text that he sacrificed the interests of his country to 
predilection for the English. The active interference, how- 
ever, of the king of Prussia, in defence of the prince of 
Orange, to whom he was nearly related by marriage, re- 
stored the authority of the Stadtholder, while the dignified 
tone and vigorous preparations of the British minister inti- 
midated the French from assisting the republicans 



430 HISTORY OF ENCfLANB. 

This year is also remarkable for the impeachment of 
Warren Hastings, Esq., late governor- general of Bengal. 
The trial of this gentleman continued for seven years, and 
terminated in his honourable acquittal. The disgraceful 
procrastination of his trial, and the acrimony with which 
it was conducted, led many to compassionate a man, who, 
held up as a great public delinquent, seemed destmed to 
lead a life of impeachment, and to have become the object 
of a relentless persecution. If there were errors in the 
conduct of Warren Hastings, they were more than com- 
pensated by his exertions and moral intentions ; and it 
may safely be affirmed, that in the administration of India, 
he in general deserved praise rather than censure, and that 
his character will be always venerated in this country, 
which was essentially benefitted by his services. 

The next session was memorable for the first discussion 
in parliament on the subject of the inhuman traffic 
^Iqq in slaves. Mr. Wilberforce, who had announced 
his intention of moving for the abolition of that 
abominable trade, was unavoidably absent from indisposi- 
tion ; but, at the suggestion of sir William Dolben, some 
regulations were enacted for restraining the cruelties prac- 
tised on board the slave-ships. 

The same year being the centenary of the glorious revo- 
lution of 1688, the 5th of November, the day of king Wil- 
liam's landing, was celebrated by rejoicings in various 
parts of the kingdom. 

Soon after the recess of parliament, the king, who had 
been rather indisposed, was advised to try the mineral wa- 
ters of Cheltenham, where he appeared to recover his 
health ; but on his return to London, late in the summer, ,_ 
his illness returned with new and alarming symptoms; and 
it could no longer be concealed, but that the malady with 
wliich he was afflicted was a mental derangement, that : 
rendered him wholly incapable of public business. - *'^^ 

It now became necessary to appoint a regent to exercise 
the royal functions till the health of his majesty should be 
restored ; and Mr. Fox claimed this high office in the 
name, and on the behalf of the heir-apparent, as appei» 
taining to his royal highness of right. On the other hand, 
Mr. Pitt and his adherents, who formed by far the most 
numerous body, both in and out of parliament, maintained, 
tliat the heir to the crown was merely a subject ; that it 



GEORGE III. 431 

ivas little short of treason against the constitution to urge 
his right to the regency, and that it belonged entirely to 
ilie two remaining branches of the legislature to supply the 
temporary deficiency. 

Long and violent debates ensued in parliament, on the 
restraints under which the minister thought it necessary to 
subject the prince of Wales, as regent, in the exercise of 
his authority. At last, the regency bill was about to pass,* 
when to the unspeakable joy of the nation, as well as of 
every member of his august family^ his majesty, 
on the t^nth of March, sent a message to parlia- i^qq 
ment. to acquaint them with his recovery, and his 
ability to attend to the public business of the kingdom. 
These tidings diffused an universal and heartfelt satisfac* 
tion. Every town, every village, exhibited its testimonies 
of loyalty and affection to the best of sovereigns at the in- 
stant ; and these renewed on the twenty-third of April, 
when his majesty, in solemn procession, went to St. Paul's 
cathedral, to return thanks to Heaven for his recovery. 

In the month of July in this year, one of the most un- 
expected and extraordinary revolutions took place in 
France that the annals of history record. The deranged 
. ., state of the finances of France, and the mild disposition 
/<;' and moderate principles of Louis XVI., the reigning sove- 
», ? reign, inducing him to assemble the notables of his king- 
dom, an opportunity was taken to subvert the monarchy, 
and to reduce the king to a state of degradation, which 
prevented him not only from doing wrong, but from ren- 
dering any essential service to the state. The bastile, 
which had long been used for the most despotic purposes, 
was suddenly levelled to the ground, and the prisoners 
*^ liberated ; while a national assembly, chosen by the peo- 
ple, wrested from the king the privilege of making war or 
,^; peace, and abolished all titles of peerage and distinction 
^ ' of orders. The frame of government was entirely chan- 
ged, and a limited hereditary monarchy was established, in 
which the legislative authority was rendered superior to 
the executive, the latter being allowed only a suspensive 
vote. The person of the king was (iftclared inviolable, 
and the throne indivisible. 

* The parliament of Ireland invited the prince of Wales to ac 
cept the regency without any limitation, while the B.itish legisla 
ture imposed many nestrictions. 



4^ HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

Some British adventurers having estahlished a settle- 
ment at Nootka or King's Sounds* on the north-wost coast 
of America, for the purpose of trading with the native-s for 
furs, the Spaniards, vrho claimed the exchisive sove- 
, L^A reignty of this coast, from Cape Horn to the sixti- 
eth degree of north latitude, seized on the fort, and 
captured such Enghsh vessels as were found trading in 
those parts. This conduct produced remonstrances to the 
court of Spain ; but the Spaniards being unwilling to make 
any atonement for the act of violence of which they had 
been guilty, both nations prepared for war. The matter, 
however, was at last settled by a convention, by which Spain 
conceded every point in dispute, though the Spanish flag 
at the fort and settlement of Nootka was never struck. 

By an act passed in the next session of parliament, Ca- 
nada was divided into two distinct governments, to each 
of which a legislative council and assembly were appointed, 
after the model of the British constitution. The councils 
were nominated by the sovereign, and the houses of assem- 
bly were chosen by the people. The habeas corpus act 
became a fundamental law of the constitution of Canada; 
and the British parliament were restrained from imposing 
any other taxes than such as were necessary for the regu- 
lation of trade and commerce. This wise and salutary 
measure has been productive of the best effects, and will 
probably secure the dependence of that province on Great 
Britain, by the strong tie of gratitude and interest. 

In the course of this year, England was nearly involved 
in hostilities with Russia. That power, leagued with 
Austria, had for some time carried on a war against the 
Turks. The Germans, however, were very unsuccessful 
in this unjust warfare ; but the Russians defeated the 
Turks in every battle, and took from them several strong 
places, particularly Oczakow and Ismael. At the latter, 
the Turks made a gallant resistance ; but the savage Su- 
warroff, who commanded the Russians, caused about thirty 
thousani^ of the inhabitants to be put to death, and thus 
fixed an indelible stain on his character. 

These successe^and the cruelties which accompanied 
them, alarmed ther British court, and a large fleet was fit- 

♦ First discovered by captain Cook, in his last voyage round tho 
world. 



grorue: nib 433 

ted out, in order to prevent Russia from obtaining the na- 
vigation of the Black Sea ; but the majorities which the 
minister was able to command in parliament on this occa* 
sion, being very inconsiderable, and the popular voice be* 
ing decidedly against the policy of going to war with Rus- 
sia, the armament was laid aside, after an enormous ex- 
pense had been incurred, and the Porte concluded a peace 
with the czarina on her own terms. In justice, however, 
10 administration, it should be observed, that the measures 
which they adopted on this occasion were founded in wis- 
dom and sound policy ; and that, if their designs had not 
been counteracted by the violence of faction in parliament, 
whose sentiments prevailed among the great mass of the 
people, it seems probable the partition of Poland, and 
other encroachments and revolutions which followed, 
might have been prevented. 

The events which had taken place in France had exci- 
ted much interest in this country, and provoked discussions 
which occasioned the supporters of the French revolution 
to be regarded as inimical to the British constitution, while 
the opponents of that measure were considered as the 
faithful guardians and defenders of our excellent estab- 
lishment in church and state. It was, indeed, natural 
that the dawn of liberty in a country long enslaved, 
should be hailed with joy by the generous sympathy of 
Britons, who had long enjoyed the blessings of civil and 
religious liberty ; but it was not to be expected, that the 
anarohy and violence which prevailed in Franc© would 
have been regarded with any other feelings than those of 
detestation and abhorrence, and that the friends of the 
British constitution would have evinced their approbation 
of principles, which they saw perverted, and apphed to the 
most dangerous purposes. 

On the anniversary of the 14th of July, the day on which 
the bastile had been demolished, the partisans of 
liberty in this country agreed to celebrate that event t^Qi 
by festive meetings in several of the principal towns 
and cities of the kingdom. This was certainly an act of 
indiscretion, as the French revolution had incurred great 
odium by the events which had lately taken place in France, 
and as the spirit of party prevailed in a most violent degree 
at this time m England. In Birmingham, where great 
animosity had long subsisted between the high-church 
37 



434 HISTORY OF ENGLAND* 

party and the dissenters, at the head of whom was the 
justly celebrated philosopher, Dr. Priestley, the meeting, 
was attended with the most lamentable consequences. 
The persons who there assembled to commemorate the 
French revolution, were insulted by a furious mob, who 
shouted " church and king,'* and who broke the windows 
of the hot^el in which the company were assembled. In- 
cited and inflamed by their leaders, the mob dispersed over 
vhe town and its vicinity, set on fire the meeting-houses, 
and the dwellings of the most eminent dissenters, and 
g ving a loose to every kind of intemperance, became 
equally formidable to both parties. The mansion of Dr* 
Priestley was consumed, with his valuable library and phi- 
losophical apparatus ; and thus a man, whose talents 
would have been an honour to any country, was treated 
by these Vandals as a foe to the human race, and ulti 
mately obliged to take shelter in America. No effectual 
effort was employed to check these infamous and disgrace- 
ful proceedings, till the arrival of some troops of dragoons 
from Nottingham, when, after four days of tumult and de- 
vastation, order and tranquility were restored. Many of 
the rioters were brought to trial, and three of them capi- 
tally punished. 

In the East Indies, earl Cornwallis, who had been ap- 
pointed governor-general of Bengal, carried on with equal 
conduct and good fortune the war against Tippoo Saib, in 
which this country bad been involved by the intrigues of 
the French. After overcoming all impediments, he form- 
ed the siege of Seringapatam, the capital of Mysore, and 
obliged Tippoo to conclude a peace on the terms offered 
to him, and to give his two sons as hostages for the per- 
formance of its conditions. 

When parliament met, Mr. Pitt, to the agreeable sur- 
prise of the nation, proved that the finances were in such 

a flourishing state, that government would be ena- 
t7Q9 ^^^^ ^^ lighten the burdens of the people, by taking 

off taxes to the amount of two hundred thousand 
pounds a year, and, at the same time, to appropriate dou- 
ble that sum for the reduction of the national debt. He 
also observed, that the general state of affairs in Europe 
promised a continuance of peace, and that he expected an 
immediate reduction of the naval and military establish- 



GEORGE III. 435 

tnent. These brilliant prospects, however, were obscured 
before the conclusion of the year. 

The continental powers, jealous of the principles which 
had been developed in the French revolution, held a secret 
convention at Pilnitz, in Lusatia, where it was determined 
to prepare for war against France. The haughty demands 
of restitution urged by the emperor, left no other alterna- 
tive to the French people than to declare war against Aus- 
tria ; and Prussia joining against France, it was evident 
that Great Britain could not long be kept out of the vor- 
tex. The combined armies of Austria and Prussia enter- 
ed France under the duke of Brunswick, accompanied by 
the Prussian monarch in person ; and, under the sanction 
of the two courts, was issued a proclamation, which de- 
nounced the most dreadful vengeance against the French 
nation, and threatened to punish as rebels to their king, 
and destroyers of the public tranquility, all such as were 
found in arms against the troops of the allied powers. 

This savage and impolitic manifesto, which seemed pur- 
posely calculated to complete the ruin of the French king, 
filled up the measure of the popular fury. The palace of 
the Thuilleries was attacked by the Parisian populace ; 
and, being resolutely defended by the Swiss guards, . 
a most bloody conflict ensued, which terminated in ^^' 
the total defeat and destruction of the guards, and i-^qn 
the complete triumph of the Parisians. The king, 
with the queen, at the commencement of the engagement, 
had made a precipitate retreat to the hall of the national 
assembly, and that unfeeling body committed them close 
prisoners to the temple. Soon after, Louis XVI. was for- 
mally deposed, and the abolition of royalty in France de- 
creed by the national convention. Massacres, unparallel- 
ed in the annals of civilized nations, were perpetrated un- 
der the sacred name of liberty. The prisons were forced 
open ; and all those murdered, who had been con- <;v 
fined for imputed sentiments of royalty. In short, ^J^ ' 
the party which had usurped all power in France, 
were guilty of atrocities, which, to relate in simple terms, 
would turn humanity pale. On this occasion, the princess 
Lamballe was one of the many victims to their infernal 
vengeance ; and her fate was attended with such circum- 
"stances of horror as could scarcely enter into the imagina 
lion of man. 



436 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

After the deposition of Louis, our ambassador was re- 
called from Paris ; and though Chauvelin, the French 
ambassador, still remained in London, he was not acknow- 
ledged in any official capacity. Not only were the Aus- 
trian and Prussian armies compelled to evacuate France, 
but the French general Dumourier overran the Low Coun- 
tries in a series of triumphs ; and, before the year had 
closed, the whole of the Austrian Netherlands, with the 
exception of Tjuxemburgh and Liege, had submitted to the 
arms of the republican invaders. In the exultation occa- 
sioned by these successes, the convention passed their 
famous decree, offering fraternity and assistance to all na- 
tions engaged in a struggle for liberty ; and, on the capture 
of Antwerp, they declared the navigation of the Scheldt 
free, which this country was bound by treaty to resist. 

These decrees were justly obnoxious to the British mi- 
nistry, as encouraging sedition and revolt in every mo- 
narchical government, and treating with contempt the 
rights of neutral nations. A royal proclamation appear- 
ed, in which it was declared, that evil disposed persons in 
this country were acting in concert with others in foreign 
parts, in order to subvert the laws and constitution ; and 
avowing his majesty^s design of forthwith embodying a 
part of the militia. Considerable alarm was spread through 
the sound part of the nation, of which description the ma- 
jority was immense ; and both public bodies and private 
individuals testified their zeal for preserving the public 
peace, and supporting the constitution of their country. 
Numerous associations were formed against republicans 
and levellers ; loyal addresses poured in from all parts ; 
and the pulpit and the press were alike employed in re- 
commending social order, and in disseminating those prin- 
ciples which had raised Britain to a state of unexampled 
political happiness. 

When the parliament met, the infamous fraternizing de- 
cree of France having excited just alarm and indignation, 
a bill was passed, by which his majesty should be empow- 
ered to order aliens to quit the kingdom, as circumstances 
might justify or policy require. It was now sufficiently 
evident, that hostilities between Great Britain and France 
would not be long deferred. 

A sentiment of horror pei*vaded the nation, when Intel 
\igence was received of the condemnation and public exe 



GEORfiK Itl. 437 

cution of the unfortunate Louis XVI. the mildest and 
most inoffensive of a long line of kings, who suffer- , Ig^ 
ed death, by the punishment of the guillotine, on the 
21st of January. The parliament being sitting, advantage 
was taken of the sensation which this melancholy event 
produced, to unite all parties in the vigorous prosecution of a 
war, for which pi*eparations had long been making. Chau- 
velin, the accredited minister of Louis XVI., was ordered 
to quit the kingdom ; and the French republic, regarding 
his dismission as a direct act of hostility, declared war 
against the king of Great Britain, and the prince of Orange, 
as stadtholder of the United Provinces. 

The necessity of this war, which was actively underta- 
ken by this country without any formal declaration, was 
warmly disputed in parliament ; and it was affirmed that 
hostilities with France, on the grounds alleged by minis- 
ters, were neither for the honour nor the interest of Great 
Britain, The English troops, under the command of th€ 
duke of York, having joined those of Austria and Prussia, 
the combined armies defeated the French generals, Va- 
lence, Miranda, Dumourier, and Dampierre, and took the 
cities of Valenciennes, Conde, Mentz, and Quesnoy. It 
was resolved in a council of war, that the British, Hanove- 
rians, and Dutch, should separate from the main army, and 
attack West Flanders. Accordingly, the British forces un- 
der the duke of York made an attempt on Dunkirk ; but 
the English army was compelled to retreat with the loss 
of all its heavy artillery. 

Meanwhile, the fury of the jacobins in France roused 
the people in several provinces to resistance ; and lord 
Hood being cruising in the Mediterranean, the inhabitants 
of Toulon entered into a negotiation with him, and deli- 
vered into his possession the town and the shipping; but 
the republicans, collecting a large irregular force, attacked 
tJie place with such impetuosity, that the English were 
obliged to withdraw, after destroying nine of the enemy's 
ships of the line and some frigates. 

Though this campaign was on the whole successful on 
the side of the allies, yet its termination was by no means 
equally auspicious as its commencement. They had pre- 
served Holland and recovered the Netherlands ; but the 
tide of success was now turned against the confederates, 
37* 



438 HISTORY OP ENGT.AND. 

who, acting without any regularly concerted plan, showed 
alternate vigour and irresolution. 

At home, revolutionary doctrines were industriously 
propagated, and seditious societies formed ; and several 
persons of talents, who had lent their aid in promoting 
schemes dangerous to the constitution, were arrested and 
brought to trial. By the severity of the laws of Scotland, 
some of them, being convicted of sedition in that country, 
were sentenced to be transported to Botany Bay, which 
was accordingly earned into execution ; but in England, 
the promoters of disorder and confusion, who had been 
indicted for high treason, were all eventually acquitted. 
The merits of the judgments on the delinquents in Scot- 
land afterwards underwent a discussion in parliament. 

A message from the king to both houses of parliament 
announced the avowed intentions of the enemy to invade 
this country. A great augmentation of the militia, 
ITQl ^^^^ ^^^ addition of volunteer fensible corps, were 
accordingly voted. The ardour with which young 
men of all ranks entered into these military associations, 
for the purpose of defending their country, equally damped 
the resolution of domestic traitors and foreign foes ; an(l 
the preparations which had been made for invading Eng 
land began to slacken, and were at last wholly discon 
tinned. 

On the continent, the arms of the allies, from a want ol 
cordial co-operation, had experienced many reverses ; but 
the English were consoled by the splendid naval victory 
obtained by lord Howe over the French fleet, which had 
J , ventured from Brest harbour, for the purpose of 
!^J^^.' protecting a large convoy from America. In this 
action, which was warmly contested, the French 
suffered a total defeat, with the loss of six ships of the 
line taken, and one sunk. The French fleet consisted of 
twenty-six sail of the line, and the English of twenty-five. 
In the West Indies, Martinico, St. Lucia, and Guada- 
loupe, were successively captured ; and in the East, Pon- 
dicherry, Chandernagore, and Mahie, fell under the power 
of the English. In short, signal as havl been the disasters 
of the allied armies on the continent, in almost every en- 
terprise in which the British were singly engaged, they 
were completely successful. 

An accession was made to the British empire by the an 



GEORGE m. 439 

iiexation of Corsica to the crown of England ; but policy, 
or necessity, in a short time compelled this country to 
abandon an island, which would ever have been attended 
with more expense than advantage. 

When the victories of the French in the Netherlands 
had removed their apprehensions from foreign enemies, 
their attention was directed to internal tyranny. After the 
jacobins had triumphed over the girondists, they were 
themselves divided into two parties. Those called the 
faction of the cordeliers, being opposed to the views of Ro- 
bespierre, who had made rapid strides to single despotism, 
were arrested by his orders, and put to death. The French 
people, however, no sooner considered the atrocities of 
which Robespierre had been guilty, than a powerful party 
was formed against him ; and the fall of the tyrant put an 
end to the reign of terror in France ; but under every suc- 
cessive faction, the arms of the republic prevailed on the 
continent, and at once Germany, Spain, and Italy, felt 
their irresistible force. The united provinces were speedily 
overrun by a French army ; and the Stadtholder, with his 
family, sought refuge in England. 

In this year, Poland, overwhelmed by a foreign des- 
potism, was blotted out from the number of European king- 
doms, and its territories were divided between Prussia, 
Austria, and Russia, the three powers that conspired and 
effected its ruin. 

The splendid successes of the French in the last cam- 
paign, had disposed most of the neighbouring pow- 
ers to acknowledge the republic. Prussia and ^ly^^ 
Spain concluded a treaty with France ; and Hol- 
land, being fraternized by the French, the Dutch, from 
long treacherous friends, became the open enemies of this 
country. Warm debates took place in the British parlia- 
ment on the subject of peace ; but the warlike proposals 
of ministers were still supported by great majorities. At 
this period of the contest, the nation seemed weary and 
dispirited ; but another victory by sea, gained by lord Brid- 
port, off port I'Orient, tended to encourage the people, and 
to convince them that they were invulnerable on their na- 
tive element. The engagement began early in the morn- 
ing, and continued till three in the afternoon, by which 
time three ships of the line had struck their colours. The 



440 ^ HISTORY OF ENGLAND* 

rest of the French squadron, keeping close in shore, es 
caped into I'Orient. 

In the spring of this year, his royal highness the prince 
of Wales contracted a matrimonial alliance with his cou- 
sin, the princess Caroline Amelia, daughter of the duke 
of Brunswick. This marriage, which gave great joy to 
the people, eventually proved a source of much domestic 
miseiy and national inquietude. In the following year, 
the princess gave birth to a daughter ; and, soon after, a 
formal separation of the parents took place. 

Various circumstances had inspired the English people 
with a spirit of discontent. The cruel and illegal practices 
of crimps for the recruiting service had occasioned several 
violent tumults ; and the increasing scarcity of provisions 
aggravated the public ill-humour. The reforming socie- 
ties began to act with great boldness ; and that denomina- 
ted the Corresponding Society held several public meet- 
ings, one of which, in the fields near Copenhagen House, 
was computed to be attended by fifty thousand persons, 
and was distinguished by the daring addresses made to the 
people. On the first day of the meeting of parliament, his 
majesty was grossly insulted in passing to the house of 
lords by a furious mob, who clamorously demanded peace, 
and the dismission of Mr. Pitt. 

In consequence of this outrage, two bills passed both 
houses of parliament ; one for the better security of his 
majesty's person, by extending the laws of treason : the 
other, for the prevention of seditious meetings. These bills, 
however, did not pass without strong opposition. 

This year, that valuable settlement, the Cape of Good 
Hope, and part of Ceylon, were wrested from the Dutch ; 
but an expedition to Quiberon, in which were embarked 
about three thousand French emigrants, entirely failed. 

An overture was made by the British government to ne- 
gotiate a peace with France ; but it was so captiously, not 
to say insolently received, that it was impossible to take 
any farther steps for the attainment of this object. The 
truth seems to be, that the two governments were less in- 
clined to a pacification than the people, who were anxious 
to be relieved from a war, the evils of which were severely 
felt, and the eventual advantages of which they did not 
comprehend, or did not think sufficient to compensate the 
pressures under which they laboured. 



GEORGE III. 441 

During the last campaign, the French had been less 
successful than in the former year ; but the directory made 
vigorous preparations for placing the numerous armies of 
the republic in a most formidable posture ; and the success 
of the French arms was not surpassed in any former pe- 
riod. In Italy, the republican troops were com- 
^'^qA manded by general Bonaparte,* whose advance 
into that country was an almost uninterrupted ca- 
reer of victory. He defeated the imperialists at Lodi, and 
compelled nearly the whole of Italy to sue for peace. In 
Germany, too, the campaign began successfully on the 
side of the French ; and generals Moreau and Jourdan 
penetrated to the very heart of the empire ; but they were 
afterwards repelled by the archduke Charles, who drove 
back the invaders. 

Hence the love of peace became more and more felt by 
the British and the Austrians, who now alone remained of 
the grand confederacy which had been formed against 
France ; but in proportion as the enemy was successful, 
he increased his demands, and refused to listen to equal 
terms of accommodation. To evince the sincerity of their 
desire for peace, the British ministry sent lord Malmesbury 
as plenipotentiary to Paris, to open a negotiation with the 
French republic. A mutual restitution of conquests was 
the basis on which his lordship was empowered to treat ; 
but the French refusing to restore the Netherlands, ordered 
lord Malmesbury to quit Paris in forty-eight hours, and 
the French territory with as much expedition as possible. 
Whether either of the two governments was really desirous 
of peace at this time, seems very doubtful. 

At the close of this year, the French, encouraged by re- 
ports of disaffection in Ireland, attempted, with thirteen 
ships of the line, and a large body of troops, to make a 
descent at Bantry-bay ; but the winds dispersing the ar- 
mament, the commander-in-chief, who had arrived at his 

* Napoleon Bonaparte was a native of Corsica, where he was 
born in 1769. With the most intrepid courage, and an aspiring am- 
bition, he possessed talents of the first order, which raised him to the 
summit of power in France, and rendered him formidable to all the 
neighbouring nations. After seating himself on the throne of the 
Bourbons, the whole of Europe, with the exception of Great Britain, 
submitted to the will of this wonderful man. 



442 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

place of destination, returned to Brest with the loss of one 
ship of the hne and two frigates. 

In Saldanna bay, a Dutch fleet of seven sail of the line, 
which had sailed in hopes of retaking the Cape of Good 
Hope, was captured by admiral Elphinstone ; and thus 
ended a campaign, in which Britain was uniformly suc- 
cessful on her own element. 

The aspect of affairs, however, was gloomy and 
dismal. The rapid and enormous increase of the |I^q^ 
national debt had created an alarm among the pro- 
prietors of the public funds ; and the bank having advan- 
ced immense and extraordinary sums to government, it 
was found expedient to stop the payment in specie. This 
strong measure, which necessity alone could justify, caus- 
ed a great sensation ; but it appearing that the bank had 
still a great surplus property, confidence was restored ; and 
the notes of the bank passed as freely as ever, though 
the prohibition of payment in cash was ordered to be con- 
tinued. 

Scarcely had the public alarm from the bank subsided^ 
when other dangers occasioned equal dread and conster- 
nation. A serious mutiny broke out among the seamen of 
the channel fleet lying at Spithead ; but on obtaining an 
increase of pay, which the circumstances of the times and 
their own merits rendered necessary, order and discipline 
were speedily re-established. 

It was hoped, that the concessions of government would 
have prevented any fresh insurrection ; but a mutiny broke 
out at the Nore, much more outrageous and full of danger. 
New and extravagant demands were dictated to the Admi- 
ralty, delegates were chosen to conduct the meeting, and 
one Richard Parker was appointed admiral of the muti- 
nous fleet. The firmness of government, however, and 
the enactment of two bills, denouncing death against all 
who should seduce any of his majesty's seamen from their 
duty, or hold any communication with ships in a state of 
mutiny, at length overawed those misguided men. The 
red flag of mutiny was struck ; and many of the ring 
leaders, among whom was Parker, suffered deserved pun- 
ishment. 

To these disgraceful proceedings in the channel, the 
successful bravery of our seamen against the enemy forms 
a striking contrast. Admiral sir John Jervis, commanding 



GEORGE HI. 443 

fifteen sail of the line, fell in with a Spanish fleet of twen- 
ty-seven sail off Cape St. Vincent ; and, after an engage- 
ment of five hours, in which the great superiority of Bri- 
tish tactics, skill, and bravery, was displayed, captured 
four of the number. The honour of a peerage was de 
served ly bestowed on the gallant admiral, with the title of 
earl St. Vincent, in allusion to the scene of this glorious 
achievement. 

After this victory, rear-admiral Nelson, who had parti- 
cularly distinguished himself in the action, was sent with 
a flotilla to make a nocturnal attack on the town of Santa 
Cruz, in the island of Teneriffe. This attempt, however, 
was unsuccessful ; the gallant admiral lost an arm ; and 
one hundred and fifty men were either killed or wounded 
in the assault. 

Admiral Duncan, who had long been engaged in 
blocking up the DiVich fleet in the Texel, having ^ ' i** 
returned to England to refit, the enemy ventured 
to sea. Duncan hastily returning, disposed his squadron 
in such a manner as to prevent the Dutch from escaping 
without a conflict. The action was extremely obstinate ; 
but, at last, nine of the largest ships, and two admirals, 
were the trophies of British prowess. For this service, the 
gallant admiral was raised to a peerage, by the style and 
title of lord viscount Duncan, of Camperdown, off which 
place this victory was achieved. 

Meanwhile, the British government attempted to renew 
the negotiation for peace ; and lord Malmesbury was ao-ain 
commissioned to proceed to Lisle ; but the French requi- 
ring that England should restore all the possessions which 
had been taken from France, Spain, and Holland, without 
offering any compensation on the part of those powers, the 
British plenipotentiary found it necessary to return. 

About this time, however, the Austrians being com- 
pletely discomfited in Italy, the emperor was induced to 
sign a definitive treaty with the French republic, at Campo 
Formio; and thus Great Britain was left singly to combat 
with an enemy, strengthened by a large accession of ter- 
ritory and population, after all the other powers had been 
successively withdrawn, or intimidated from our alliance. 

Ireland, which had long been agitated by foreign 
and domestic enemies, became this year the scene ^~J!Jj 
of an unnatural rebellion. The United Irishmen, 



444 HISTORY OP ENCtLANfi. 

who had formed a conspiracy against government, being 
disappointed in their expectations of receiving assistance 
from France, prepared for an extensive insurrection, with- 
out waiting for a co-operation from the continent. Stimu* 
lated by some persons of rank and consequence among 
them, they were guilty of the most savage atrocities; and 
a few of the principal traitors being themselves betrayed, 
their wretched adherents, finding concealment no longer 
possible, broke out into open rebellion. 

It would be painful to enter into the details of the cru- 
elties and murders which were perpetrated in that unhap- 
py country. In this unnatural contest, in which one part 
of the British empire warred with the rest, numbers of the 
insurgents fell ; while the survivors of the United Irishmen 
wreaked their vengeance on the unhappy prisoners that 
fell into their handsi 

At last earl Camden was recalled, and the marquis 
Cornwallis, who, to the highest personal character united 
splendid military talents, was appointed to the vice-royalty 
of Ireland. By offering pardon to all, except to the lead- 
ers in the rebellion^ he prevailed on the greatest part of the 
insurgents to surrender their arms, and take the oath of 
allegiance to his majesty ; and the rest were defeated or 
awed by the king's troops. 

The French, with a ^nall body of forces, endeavoured 
to revive the rebellion ; and, surprising our troops by their 
sudden appearance, gained a temporary advantage, but 
were soon overpowered and captured by lord Cornwallis. 
A French squadron of one ship of the line, and eight fri- 
gates, with troops and ammunition on board, destined for 
Ireland, was taken or dispersed by sir John Borlase War- 
ren ; and the whole French equipment, with the exception 
of two frigates, fell ultimately into the hands of the English. 

Meanwhile, Bonaparte had sailed from Toulon with an 
armament, consisting of thirteen ships of the line, six fri- 
gates, and transports, having on board an army of thirty 
thousand men. Malta capitulated to this armament, by 
the treachery of some of the chiefs of that island ; and 
steering its course for Egypt, the French debarked their 
forces in that country, which they speedily overran, not- 
withstanding the spirited opposition of the Mamelukes. 

Admiral Nelson, who had been detached by lord St. 
Vincent in quest of the enemy, with thirteen sail of the 



GEORGE III. 445 

line and one fifty gun ship, found the French fleet at an- 
chor in ihe bay of Aboukir. A severe and obsti- 
nate engagement ensued ; and, after a dreadful i^qg 
conflict, a complete victory rewarded the skill and 
gallantry of the British admiral, his officers and men. 
Besides the French flag-ship of 120 guns, one 74 was 
burnt ; one of 80 guns, and seven of 74, were captured ; 
two ships of the line and two frigates escaped by flight, 
but were soon after taken. If Bonaparte had iiot pos- 
sessed great talents and a fertile genius, this victory, which 
deprived his army of all communication with Europe, 
would have completely paralyzed the expedition to Egypt. 
For this service, the admiral was created lord Nelson of the 
Nile, and received a pension of two thousand pounds, be- 
sides other honours and rewards which were bestowed on 
him by some of the sovereigns of Europe. 

The grand seignior now declared war against France 
and Paul, the new emperor of Russia, in whose character 
passion and frivolity were chiefly predominant, displayed 
his detestation of French principles, and was subsidised 
by England. The emperor of Germany also joined the 
confederacy against France ; and the republic had again 
to contend with another powerful alliance. 

Meanwhile, the assessed taxes not having proved so 
productive as had been expected, the minister had re« 
course to a tax on income, requiring one tenth on all in- 
comes exceeding two hundred pounds a year. 

A measure, however, which will immortalize the me- 
mory of the premier, and deserve the lasting gratitude of 
both countries, was his projected union with Ireland ; 
which, after being canvassed with great attention in Eng- 
land, and violently opposed in Ireland, was at last carried 
into efl*ect, on principles peculiarly favourable to the real 
interests of the latter country. 

The arms of Russia speedily gave a new turn to the war 
in Italy ; the English recovered Naples for its former sove- 
reign ; and sir Sidney Smith, by his bravery and able con- 
duct, repelled an invasion of Syria, headed by Bonaparte 
himself. 

The perfidy and duplicity of Tippoo Saib having occa- 
sioned a new war in India, general Harris, with 
equal success and ability, made himself master of ^',yQ^ 
Seringapatam, in storming which the tyrant of the 
38 



446 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

Mysore fell in action, and with him the empire which had 
been established by his father Hyder Ally. The greater 
part of his dominions were seized by the East India Com- 
pany, and his family were sent to Calcutta. 

While the allies were engaged in endeavouring to make 
an impression upon France, Great Britain undertook an 
expedition to detach the Batavian republic from its con- 
nexion with the French ; and a powerful armament was 
sent to Holland, under the command of the duke of York. 

On the 27th of August, sir Ralph Abercrombie, with the 
British and Russian troops, landed at the Helder, and de- 
feated the forces opposed to them, after a short and sharp 
conflict. Soon after, however, the duke of York assuming 
the command, the enemy having assembled in great force, 
and the season being too far advanced to suffer them to 
continue in the field, in a hostile country, the English 
were obliged to abandon the enterprise with great loss. 

Meanwhile, Bonaparte left the army which he command- 
ed in Egypt, and embarking in an armed vessel, reached 
France in safety. The divisions and intrigues in the 
French directory, aided by the popularity which he had 
acquired, enabled him to seize the reins of government ; 
and dissolving the council of five hundred, he established 
a new constitution, the executive part of which was vested 
in himself as first consul, with two subordinate consuls as 
his colleagues. 

On his accession to the consular government, Bonaparte 
addressed a letter to the kino^ of Great Britain, and re- 
quested his majesty to concur with him in restoring peace 
to the world ; but these overtures being rejected, under 
the plea that his continuance in power might be as unsta- 
ble as his predecessors, he prepared to carry on the war 

J with vigour. At Marengo, he gave the Austrians 

^Y^ a most signal defeat, and obliged the emperor to 
Iftn'fl conclude the treaty of Luneville. Malta having 
submitted to the arms of England, after a blockade 
of two years, the French entered into a treaty for evacuating 
Egypt ; but the British government unhappily refusing to 
ratify this convention, which had been formed under the 
auspices of Sir Sidney Smith, the French general in that 
country recommenced hostilities ; and in order to expel 
the enemy from that province, without which our India 
possessions could not have been secure, sir Ralph Aber- 



GEORGE III. 447 

crbmbie was sent into Egypt with a powerful army. On 
the 21st of March, 1801, that gallant veteran defeated the 
French general, Menou, with great loss, but was mortally 
wounded in the action, and died a few days after, equally 
beloved and revered for his private virtues as for his mili- 
tary talents. General Hutchinson, who succeeded to the 
command, completed the reduction of Egypt. 

Meanwhile, as the union between Great Britain and 
Ireland had been fixed by the legislature to commence and 
be in force from the first day of the nineteenth century, 
the imperial parliament of both islands met at 
Westminster, on the 22d of January. The empe- ioqi 
ror of Russia had not only withdrawn himself from 
the confederacy against France, but listening to the coun- 
sels of Bonaparte, had stimulated Denmark and Sweden 
to enter into an armed neutrality against this country. 
When all Europe was thus combined against Britain, and 
almost every port shut against us, Mr. Pitt and his princi- 
pal coadjutors resigned their situations. The minister, 
apprehending, as has been supposed, that his continuance 
m office might prove an impediment to the restoration of 
peace, or considering, as is more probable, and has been 
asserted, that his pledge to the catholics at the time of the 
union, required either the fulfilment of his promise or the 
sacrifice of his place, relinquished all his employments. 
Mr. Addington, speaker of the house of commons, was ap- 
pointed first lord of the treasury, and chancellor of the 
exchequer; lord Hawkesbury, secretary of state for the 
foreign department ; and earl St. Vincent, first lord of the 
admiralty. 

The king of Prussia earnestly promoted the northern 
confederacy, and sent an army into Hanover ; but a Bri- 
tish fleet, under admirals sir Hyde Parker and lord Nelson, 
being despatched to open the Baltic, an engage- 
ment took place at Copenhagen, which had been ^q/^* 
strongly fortified, when the result was a complete 
victory on the part of the English, chiefly obtained by the 
intrepid conduct of lord Nelson. After this bloody battle, 
an armistice was agreed on ; and the emperor Paul being 
succeeded by his son Alexander, the northern confederacy 
was dissolved, and peace was restored between England 
and the nations of which it was composed. 

The chief difficulty in regard to a pacification with 



448 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

France being removed by the evacuation of Egypt by the 
French, preliminaries of peace were signed on the first of 
October, to the unbounded joy of the united kingdom. The 

terms, however, were far from giving universal satis- 
ihoi ^^^^^^^^» ^^^ many saw in them the seeds of a new 

war at no great distance ; but, after various delays 
and difficulties, a definitive treaty was signed at Amiens, on 

the 27th of March following. By this treaty, Great 
1802 ■'^^'i^^^^ restored to France and her allies every 

possession or colony which she had taken from 
them during the war, except the Spanish island of Trini- 
dad, and the Dutch settlement of Ceylon. Egypt was to 
be restored to fhe Porte ; and the integrity of the Turkish 
empire was guarantied. The French were to evacuate 
the territories of Naples and of Rome. Malta was to be 
restored to its own order of knights. 

It was soon, however, evident that the treaty of Amiens 
would not be productive of any long period of tranquility. 
The restless ambition of Bonaparte, which, whilst it could 
not suflfer neighbouring nations to repose in peace and se- 
curity, was at last fatal to himself. No man, either of 
ancient or modern times, can be compared with this ex- 
traordinary person, who, as if regarding Europe as too 
confined a theatre for his ambition, grasped at the domi- 
nion of the whole world, and whose unparalleled life seems 
to resemble a fiction and romance, rather than a history 
of real actions. 

His assumption of the presidency of the Italian republic, 
and the convention which he had formed with Spain, were 
objects of jealousy to the British government ; but the 
subjugation of Switzerland was a wanton aggression, which 
excited indignation in the breast of every friend of liberty ; 
and the aims at dominion which were every where visible, 
withheld the English ministry from surrendering Malta 

unconditionally. This produced a rupture between 
1 S(V? *^^® *^^*^ countries, and war was proclaimed by Great 
loUd ;gj,-^ajj^ against France, on the 18th of May. 
One of the first measures of Bonaparte, after the renewal 
of hostilities, was to seize on the electorate of Hanover ; 
but the invasion of England appeared at this time the prin- 
cipal object which occupied his attention. A flotilla was 
prepared for conveying the military hordes of France to 
the British shores ; extensive camps were formed in the 



GEORGE III. 449 

vicinity of the harbours ; and the troops were kept in con- 
stant readiness for embarkation. Such, however, were the 
exertions made to receive the boasted invaders of England, 
that volunteer associations were every where formed ; men 
of all ranks and professions, animated with one common 
feeling of indignation, devoted a great portion of their 
time to preparations for the defence of their country ; and 
the whole kingdom presented the appearance of one wide 
tented field. 

The regular military force of Great Britain was also 
augmented beyond all former precedent, and stationed in 
different parts of the kingdom ; while our fleets blockaded 
the enemy's ports, and confined their squadrons arid flo- 
tillas within the protection of their own batteries. 

Meanwhile, a new insurrection broke out in Dublin, 
which occasioned some alarm, but which was speedily re- 
pressed ; but lord Rilwarden, and his nephew Mr. Wolfe, 
unfortunately passing at the time, were dragged out of 
their carriage by the insurgents, and barbarously put to 
death. 

This year, the French government transferred Louisia- 
na to the United States of America, for the sum of fifteen 
millions of dollars. 

The majorities on the side of ministers being greatly 
reduced, by the opposition of Mr. Pitt, who had 
hitherto supported the administration, Mr. Ad- ^oni 
dington resigned the oflice of chancellor of the ex- 
chequer and first lord of the treasury, and was succeeded 
by Mr. Pitt. At the same time, the duke of Portland was 
appointed president of the council ; and lord Eldon lord 
chancellor. 

Various attempts against the enemy's flotilla on their 
own coasts were unsuccessful. The most considerable of 
this kind, was an undertaking by lord Keith, with a fleet 
of men of war and other ships, to destroy about one hun- 
dred and fifty French vessels moored on the outside of 
Boulogne pier. The instruments chiefly depended on for 
this purpose, were certain exploding vessels, called cata- 
marans, which, however, entirely disappointed the expec- 
tations that had been formed. 

Though Spain had not declared war against Britain, 
yet the English government considered that power as 
wholly under the control of Bonaparte; and a British 
38* 



450 msToRY OP* fiNGLAjio. 

squadron was, therefore, sent to intercept the Spanish fri- 
gates which conveyed specie from America to Cadiz. An 
engagement ensued, in wJiich one of the Spanish vessels 
blew lip; and the rest, with the treasure, fell into the 
hands of the English ; but this act of the British govern- 
ment can scarcely be considered otherwise than as a vio- 
lation of the law of nation s» 

The aggressions of Bonaparte in Germany and Italy, 
provoked another coalition among the European powers ; 
and the " mighty army of England," which was said to 
be intended for the invasion of this countiy, and which 
had remained nearly two years stationary and in- 
^Qfx^ active, was withdrawn from the shores of the 
channel ; but the fatal battle of Austerlitz destroy- 
ed the hopes of Russia and Austria, and compelled the 
latter power to accept such terms of accommodation as 
France thought fit to dictate* 

Meanwhile, Goree, which had been taken by the French, 
was recaptured ; and the Dutch settlement of Surinam 
capitulated to a force under the command of sir Charles 
Green and commodore Hood. Bonaparte, on whom the 
people of France had conferred the rank and title of em- 
peror of the French, made an overture to the king, in 
which he expressed a wish for peace, and deprecated the 
continuance of hostilities as tending to a useless effusion 
of blood. The reply of the British government declared, 
that the king, though ardently desirous of peace, was con- 
vinced that this object could be attained only by arrange- 
ments which should provide for the future safety and tran- 
quility of Europe, and, in consequence, till he had com- 
municated with the continental powers with whom he 
was engaged in confidential relations, he felt it impossible 
to give a more particular answer to the overture. 

The misfortunes of our allies on the continent were in 
some degree com.pensated by the brilliant success whicli 
attended the fleets of Great Britain. A fleet of twelve 
French, and six Spanish ships of the line, had sailed for 
the West Indies, under the command of admiral Ville- 
neuve ; and lord Nelson, with only eleven sail of the line, 
pursued the French admiral, who, terrified by the intelli- 
gence of his approach, hastened back to Europe, and, 
near cape Finisterre,was encountered by sir Robert C alder, 
who took two of his large ships. 



GEORGfi 111. 451 

Soon after, the combined fleets of France and Spain, 
amounting to thirty-three sail of the line, again sailed un- 
der the same admiral, with the intention of giving battle 
to lord Nelson. The British admiral, however, had been 
re-enforced with seven ships, which augmented his fleet to 
the number of twenty-seven sail of the line. On the 21st 
of October, lord Nelson, to his great joy, descried the 
mighty armament of the enemy, about seven miles east of 
cape Trafalgar. The last memorable signal of the British 
admiral, " England expects every man to do his duty,'' 
was received with acclamations from the whole fleet* 
About noon the dreadful contest began, by the leading 
ships of the British column breaking through the enemy's 
line. In this bloody battle, lord Nelson was mortally 
wounded by a musket-ball, fired from the shrouds of the 
Redoubtable, to which the admiral's ship, the Victory, was 
opposed, after having compelled Villeneuve to strike his 
flag on board the Bucentaur. The British hero, however, 
did not close his eyes in death till he had received assu- 
rance of a decisive victory, when, faintly smiling, he ex- 
claimed, " God be praised !" and expired. In this engage- 
ment, nineteen of the enemy's ships were captured by the 
English. The patriotic hero, by whom this victory had 
been achieved, was interred in the most magnificent man- 
ner, at the public expense ; the title of earl Nelson was 
conferred on his brother, with a suitable income ; and mo- 
numents to the memory of him who had been the pride 
and the glory of his country, arose in all the principal 
towns of the empire. 

Meanwhile, the arms of Britain were crowned with new 
triumphs in India, where sir Arthur Wellesley, now duko 
of Wellington, defeated Scindiah, a powerful Mahratta 
chieftain, and obliged him to cede a large tract of country 
to the British ; and, before the close of the year 1805, a 
peace was concluded with Holkar, another Mahratta chief, 
who was also deprived of a veiy considerable extent of 
territory. 

France and Prussia concluded a treaty, by which Ha- 
nover was transferred to the latter power ; and Frederic 
William occupied nearly the whole of that electorate, the 
property of his old ally, with his troops. 

The total failure of the continental coalition greatly aug- 
mented the gloom which prevailed in England, in conse- 



452 HISTORY OiP ENGLAND. 

quence of the alarming illness of Mr. Pitt. This distin- 
guished statesman, whose infirm state of health had beeo 
increased by anxiety and disappointment, expired- on the 
23d of January, after having directed the affairs of 
IftOfi ^^^^^ country for a longer period than any formei 
minister. Under his auspices, the maritime su- 
premacy of England was confirm.ed by a series of most 
splendid victories ; but the public burdens were enor- 
mously augmented. He laboured successfully to preserve 
Great Britain from the contagion of revolutionary princi- 
ples ; and he exerted himself with equal zeal, but with less 
success, to resist the military despotism by which France 
threatened to subjugate the continent. In short, he was 
a statesman of great ability and strength of mind, who 
rendered momentous services to his country ; and it must 
be allowed, that never was the force of the British cha- 
racter tried by greater dangers, or graced by more splendid 
achievements, than under the administration of William 
Pitt. 

On the death of this distinguished and disinterested 
statesman, lord Grenville was appointed first lord of the 
treasury ; Mr. Fox, secretary of state for foreign affairs ; 
lord Henry Petty, chancellor of the exchequer ; and Mr. 
Windham, secretary of state for the department of war 
and the colonies. 

About ten days after these appointments, a negotiation 
took place with France, which was no less singular in its 
commencement than fruitless in its result. A Frenchman, 
calling himself Gevrilliere, disclosed to Mr. Fox a plan for 
the assassination of Bonaparte ; but that minister dismiss- 
ed the wretch with indignation, and informed the French 
government of the meditated crime. This extorted from 
Bonaparte a well merited compliment to the honour and 
generosity of Mr. Fox ; and a negotiation for peace be- 
tween the two countries commenced ; but, after being con- 
tinued for a considerable length of time, the continental 
policy of France prevented a satisfactory issue. 

One of the first measures of the new ministers was an 
increase on the income-tax, which, already odious and op- 
pressive, was raised from five to ten per cent, on all in- 
comes exceeding fifty pounds. , 
In the house of commons, Mr. Fox moved a resolution, 
which was carried into effect, and which may be said to 



C150UGE III. 453 

have closed the parliamentary career of that great states 
man. This resolution proposed to take effectual measures 
for abolishing the Slave Trade ; and an address from both 
houses was carried to the king, beseeching him to obtain 
oy negotiation the concurrence of foreign powers in the 
abolition of the iniquitous traffic. 

The Cape of Good Hope again surrendered to the Bri- 
tish ; but an attempt on Spanish South America, though 
at first successful, finally proved abortive. In Italy, how- 
ever, the British arms were triumphant, and sir John Stuart 
defeated at Maida a French army under general Regnier, 
with great loss ; but this brilliant victory, which was achiev- 
ed with a comparatively small force, produced no permanent 
change in the state of the kingdom of Naples, though it 
preserved Sicily from invasion. Naples had been seized 
on by the French emperor, and Joseph Bonaparte was 
proclaimed king of that country. 

The emperor Napoleon carried into effect a scheme for 
subverting the ancient constitution of the German empire, 
by establishing what is called the confederation of the 
Rhine. The members of this confederation were the em- 
peror of the French, the kings of Bavaria and Wirtemberg, 
and several other German princes. Separating themselves 
from the Germanic empire, these princes chose Bonaparte 
for their protector, and established a federal alliance, by 
which they engaged to furnish a certain contingent of 
troops, in case of a continental war. Conformably to an 
arrangement with Napoleon, Francis resigned his office 
and title of emperor of Germany, and annexed his German 
provinces to the empire of Austria. 

On the 13th of September died that illustrious statesman 
and friend to the human race, Charles James Fox, whose 
last moments were embittered, by finding that the 
ambition of Bonaparte deprived him of the plea- lorj/^ 
sure dearest to his heart — that of terminating the 
sufferings of distracted Europe, and restoring to his coun- 
try the blessings of peace. As a senator, Mr. Fox was 
distinguished alike for the comprehensiveness of his views, 
the liberality of his principles, and the persuasive and con- 
vincino- power of his eloquence ; as a minister, he displav- 
ed in the management of public affairs the same noble 
simplicity which characterized his conduct in private life ; 
and| as a man, his great and amiable qualities acquired 



454 HISTORY OF BNGL.4ND. 

him the cordial affection of his friends, and the generous 
atlmiralion of his adversaries. 

On the death of this lamented statesman, lord Howick 
was appointed secretary of foreign affairs, and Mr. Thomas 
Grenville became first lord of the admiralty. 

The fate of Prussia proved the danger to which all the 
old governments were exposed. After Napoleon was en- 
gaged in hostilities with Great Britain and Sweden, he 
rendered himself formidable to all Europe, by the prompt- 
ness and energy of his conduct. Frederic William disco- 
vered that the French emperor, who had guarantied to him 
the possession of Hanover, was offering the restoration of 
that electorate as the basis of negotiation with the English 
court. Indignant at the danger of losing this acquisition, 
he resolved to try the hazard of war ; and, after successive 
actions, in which the Prussians were uniformly defeated, a 
tremendous conflict took place on the 14th of October, in 
the plains between Weimar and Auerstadt. The issue of 
this engagement, in which Frederic William suf- 
tsnfi f'^i'^d ^ ^^^^^ defeat, laid Prussia at the mercy of 
Bonaparte, who took possession of Berlin, and 
completely subjugated that country. Between the French 
and Russian armies a series of bloody contests also took 
place, in which the former were uniformly victorious ; and, 
at length, peace was signed at Tilsit by the emperors of 
France and Russia. 

Napoleon now controlled the whole of the continent. 
His brother Louis was created king of Holland ; his bro- 
ther Joseph, king of Naples ; and his brother Jerome was 
in person created king of Westphalia, with territories ce 
ded by Prussia and other neighbouring states. Napoleon 
himself was not only emperor of France, but also king of 
Italy ; and Spain was entirely subservient to the policy of 
that ambitious and daring, though able ruler. 

Whilst at Berlin, Bonaparte issued a decree, interdict- 
ing all commerce and correspondence between the coun- 
tries under his control and the British Islands, which he 
declared to be in a state of blockade. 

The well known reluctance of the king to extend the 
privileges of the catholics, did not prevent lord Grenville 
and his associates from introducing a bill into parliament, 
for the purpose of empowering persons of that persuasion 
to fill the highest offices in the army and navy. The king 



GEORGE III. 455 

expressed his decided objection to this measure, and de- 
miitided from his ministers a written pledge, that they 
would never again bring forward any proposal connected 
vvith the catholic question. As the ministers could not 
assent to this, they resigned their situations, and a new ad- 
ministration was formed. The duke of Portland was ap- 
pointed first lord of the treasury ; Mr. Perceval, chancellor 
of the exchequer; lord Eldon, lord chancellor ; lord Liver- 
pool, secretary for the home department ; and Mr. Can- 
ning, secretary for foreign affairs. 

A new parliament was assembled, which fully establish- 
ed the strength of the new ministers ; and the first 

/ AT) 

important measure was a plan for increasing the -I'^f^y^ 
regular army from the militia, and supplying the 
deficiencies arising from such a transfer, by a supplemen- 
tary militia. In the beginning of this year, the island of 
Curracoa surrendered to the English. 

A confederacy of the northern powers against Britain 
being now apprehended, the ministers sent a powerful ar- 
mament against Denmark, which was compelled to sur- 
render her fleet to the English, after the bombardment of 
her capital. This measure justly excited the indignation 
of Europe, and gave to the enemies of Great Britain a 
plausible pretext for their hostility. 

In consequence of the decree of Bonaparte from Berlin, 
the English ministers issued orders, subjecting all ports 
and places in Europe, from which the British flag was 
excluded, and all those in the colonies of his majesty's 
enemies, to the restrictions consequent on actual blockade, 
declaring all trade in the produce or manufactures of such 
countries or colonies to be unlawful, and authorizing the 
capture of all vessels engaged in that trade. To these 
orders Bonaparte published a rejoinder at Milan, in which 
he decreed, that all ships which should be searched by a 
British vessel, or should pay any tax to the English go- 
vernment, were denationalized, and might be lawfully cap- 
tured wherever found. 

These conflicting regulations respecting the trade of 
neutrals, occasioned an act in the American congress, im- 
posing a strict embargo on all vessels belonging to the 
American states, and commanding all foreign ships to quit 
the harbours of the United States. 

The designs of Bonaparte against Spam became daily 



456 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

more manifest ; and a treaty was concluded at Fontaine- 

bleau for the partition of Portugal. A French army was 

already on its march to Lisbon, when the Portuguese fleet 

j^ set sail from the Tagus, with the prince regent and 

nq ' the whole royal family on board, and proceeded to 

^onj Rio de Janeiro, escorted by an English squadron. 

The French army under Junot, already on the 

heights above Lisbon, took possession of that capital, and 

subjected the inhabitants to military law. 

Madeira was placed under the protection of the Eng- 
lish ; and the Danish islands in the West Indies, St. Tho- 
mas, St. John, and St. Croix, surrendered to a British 
squadron under sir Alexander Cochrane. 

The French had obtained possession of the principal 
fortresses in Spain ; and the approach of Murat, with a 
powerful army, to the capital, increased the alarm of the 
Spanish people. Charles IV. abdicated the crown in 
favour of his son, the prince of the Asturias, who com- 
menced his reign under the title of Ferdinand the Seventh ; 
but this arrangement did not suit the policy of France, 
and, the father and son quarrelling, Charles transferred to 
Napoleon the sovereignty of Spain, who, having persuaded 
Ferdinand to meet him at Bayonne, compelled him to re- 
nounce the crown in favour of his family. Charles, his 
queen, and Godoy, prince of peace, retired to Rome ; 
and Joseph Bonaparte was installed king of Spain 
^'ana ^nd the Indies ; while Joachim Murat, the bro- 
ther-in-law of the French emperor, was made king 
of Naples. 

These transactions, however, did not take place without 
causing great commotions and much effusion of blood in 
Spain ; and the Spanish people, exasperated by the cruel- 
ties committed by the French in that country, declared 
war against France, and sent deputies to implore the as- 
sistance of England. This request was readily granted, 
and a force of ten thousand men sailed to Corunna, under 
the command of sir Arthur Wellesley ; but on communica- 
ting with the Spanish leaders in that district, it was deter- 
mined to proceed to Portugal, where the troops were dis- 
embarked in Mondego bay. Junot, collecting his whole 
for^e, attacked the British army in a strong position at 
Vimiera ; but, after an obstinate contest, the French were 
defeated with the loss of between three and four thousand 



OEOtlGfE Itl. 457 

men. Sir Hugh Dalrymple, who arrived from Gibraltar to 
assume the commaad of the British army, concluded a 
disgraceful convention at Cintra, by which the French 
troops were sent to France, at the expense of the Eng- 
lish government, without being considered as prisoners of 
war. 

The command of the British army in Portugal devolved 
on sir John Moore, who arrived with a reinforcement of 
twelve thousand men. That officer had been intrusted 
with an expedition for the assistance of Sweden, against 
which war had been declared by Russia, Prussia, and 
Denmark ; but through the capricious and violent con* 
duct of the Swedish monarch, he had been constrained to 
return without landing his troops. 

Meanwhile, the disasters which befel the French armies 
in Spain, intimidated Joseph Bonaparte, who, after a resi- 
dence of ten days in Madrid, decamped from that capital, 
taking with him the regalia and crown jewels, and some 
other valuables from the palaces and treasury. On this 
occasion, the Spaniards contemptuously observed, that 
" Joseph had put into his pocket, the crown which he 
durst not wear upon his head." 

The French emperor, indignant at the conduct of the 
Spaniards, and the discomfiture of his armies, announced 
to his legislative body, that, placing himself at the head of 
his troops, he would crown his brother at Madrid, and plant 
his eagles on the fortresses of Portugal. Accordingly, a 
large and overwhelming force entered Spain ; and the un- 
disciplined troops of that country were easily defeated by 
the hosts of French veterans, commanded by the most able 
generals, and animated by the the presence of Napoleon. 

By the representations and remonstrances of Mr. Frere, 
the English minister at Madrid, sir John Moore had been 
urged to direct his march to that capital ; but hearing 
that Madrid had surrendered to the French, and that 
Napoleon was marching against him with a great body of 
forces, the English general found himself compelled to 
retreat. The distresses Avhich the British army suffered 
in this retreat were dreadful. With few intervals of re- 
pose which the French forces allowed them, they traversed 
two hundred and fifty miles in a mountainous country, in 
the middle of a severe winter, and by roads almost im^ 
passable. At length, after a most painful and harassirijij 



458 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

retreat, in which they lost several thousand men, the 

British army readied Corunna on the 12th of Ja- 

IROQ ^'^^^^TJ ^^^^ ^^ ^^^ l^t^^ of that month, when the 

embarkation of the troops was about to commence, 

they were attacked by the French^ under the command of 

marshal Soult. The British, however, though inferior in 

number, exhausted by harassing marches, and deprived of 

their artillery, which had been embarked, repulsed the 

enemy, and achieved a victory under the most adverse 

circumstances ; but, in this engagement, the English lost 

their brave commander, who was killed by a cannon ball, 

and who, in his last moments, expressed a hope that his 

country would do him justice. 

Sir Arthur Wellesley being again appointed to the 
command of the army in the peninsula, landed with rein- 
forcements in Portugal. Soult was driven from Oporto ; 
and sir Arthur Wellesley, joined by the Spanish general 
Cuesta, hastened to meet marshal Victor in the south. 
The allied army was strongly posted at Talavera, where 
it was attacked by Victor. An obstinate engagement en- 
sued, in which the French were defeated with the loss of 
ten thousand men. This victory occasioned great joy in 
England ; and sir Arthur Wellesley was honored with a 
peerage, by the title of lord viscount Wellington. 

After this battle, the enemy collected in great force, 
under marshals Ney, Soult, and Mortier, and the British 
army was obhged to retreat into Portugal. In the other 
districts of Spain, the French arms were triumphant ; and, 
at the close of the campaign, the principal armies of the 
patriots had been successively defeated and dispersed. 

The island of Martinico was taken by the EngHsh ; and 
lord Cochrane destroyed or rendered unserviceable ten 
French ships in Basque roads. 

War being again declared between Austria and France, 
the hostile armies were put in motion ; and battles were 
fought at Abensberg, at Eckmuhl, and at Ratisbon, all in 
favour of the French. In the battle of Asperne, however, 
Bonaparte was unsuccessful against the archduke Charles ; 
but at Wagram, a short time after, he obtained a decisive 
victory over the Austrians, and compelled the emperor 
again to sue for peace, which he granted. 

An expedition was fitted out for making a descent oi 
the Dutch island of Zealand ; and an armament, consist 



GEORGE III 450 

iiig of a military force of nearly forty thousand men, under 
the command of the earl of Chatham, and a fleet of thirty- 
nine sail of the line, and thirty-six frigates, under the di- 
rection of sir Richard Strachan, sailed from England. 
After a vigorous siege, Flushing was compelled to surren- 
der ; but the ulterior objects of this expedition completely 
failed ; and the occupation of the low and marshy islands 
of Walcherin and South Beveland, proved greatly destruc- 
tive to the troops, Avho were seized witli a pestilential fever. 

The reduction of Zante, and the consequent surrender 
of the Ionian islands, effected by the joint efforts of lord 
Collingwood and sir John Stuart, may be reckoned among 
the more fortunate events of this year. 

A partial change of administration took place, in con- 
sequence of the resignations of lord Castlereagh, Mr. Can- 
ning, and the duke of Portland. Mr. Perceval united in 
his own person the offices of first lord of the treasury, and 
chancellor of the exchequer ; the marquis Wellesley was 
appointed secretary for foreign affairs ; and lord Liverpoo. 
secretary at war. 

The next session of parliament commenced with violent 
debates on the disastrous expedition to Walcherin ; 
and lord Chatham thought proper to resign his '^'q^A 
office of master general of the ordnance. 

In Spain, the cause of independence was still unsuc- 
cessful ; but Cadiz, which had become the seat of govern- 
ment, being protected by a combined British and Spanish 
fleet, and occupied by a considerable military force, bade 
defiance to any attack of the enemy. 

Ciudad Rodrigo and Almeida fell successively into the 
hands of the French. At Buzaco, however, the English 
obtained a victory, but afterwards retired to the strong 
lines of Torres Vedras ; and marshal Massena, the French 
general, fixed his head quarters at Santarem. 

Napoleon divorced the empress Josephine, and married 
the archduchess Maria Louisa, daughter to the emperor 
of Austria. Europe beheld with astonishment this alliance ; 
which was not less disgraceful to the emperor Francis, than 
injurious in France to the popularity of Bonaparte. 

The sovereignty of Holland was resigned by Louis; and 
the Seven United States were annexed to the French em- 
pire. In Sweden, the states elected the French marshal 
Bernadotte, crown prince of that country. 



460 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

In the "West Indies, the English took the island of Grau- 
daloupe ; and in the Indian ocean, the French islands of 
Bourbon and the Mauritius. They also took Amboyna 
from the Dutch. 

In consequence of the return of the king's malady, the 
prince of Wales was appointed regent, subject to all the 
restrictions which, on a former occasion, had been 
1811 P^^P^^^^ ^y ^^^' P^tt. On the 6th of February, 
his royal highness was installed as regent ; and he 
declared his intention not to remove from their stations 
those whom he found his majesty's official servants, lest 
any act of his might interfere with his royal father's re- 
covery. 

The commercial distress of the nation necessarily de- 
manded the attention of parliament ; and a bill was passed 
empowering the treasury to issue exchequer bills to the 
amount of six millions sterling, the same to be reimbursed 
in three quarterly instalments ; but the effects of this bi<l 
were less beneficial than had been expected. The legis- 
lature also passed a bill, for preventing the current gold 
coin from being paid for a greater value than its current 
value, for preventing bank of England notes from beiimg 
received at a value inferior to that which they represented, 
and for staying proceedings in any distress by the tender 
of such notes. 

The difficulty of obtaining the necessary supplies of 
provisions in a desolated country, and at such a distance 
from his resources, compelled Massena to quit his strong- 
camp at Santareni. He was closely pursued by lord Wel- 
lington, who found means to force part of his army into 
occasional actions, in which great numbers of the French 
were killed or taken prisoners. In order to relieve Al- 
meida, which lord Wellington had invested, Massena at- 
tacked the British army, but was repulsed, and obliged to 
retire to Salamanca. 

Lieutenant-general Graham defeated the French at 
Barosa, where the enemy lost an eagle, six pieces of 
cannon, and upwards of three thousand men, in killed, 
wounded and prisoners. Marshal Beresford, who was in- 
vesting Badajoz, which the Spanish governor had pusil- 
lanimously surrendered to the enemy, defeated the French 
under Marshal Soult, in the battle of Albuera, in whi 'h 



GEORGE III. 461 

the enemy lost about eight thousand men in killed and 
wounded. 

In the east of Spain, the French arms were triumphant. 
Tarragona, reduced after an obstinate defence, suffered 
eveiy cruelty which could be inflicted by the conquerors. 
The Dutch island of Batavia, in the East Indies, surren- 
dered to an English force under sir Samuel Auchmuty. 

The aifairs of Great Britain were now approaching to 
a crisis. The contest in Spain was still doubtful ; a dis- 
pute existed with America, in regard to the orders in coun- 
cil, and threatened an open rupture with that country ; 
and France was preparing for the subjugation of Russia, 
which refused to comply with the treaty of Tilsit 
by excluding the British from all commerce with ,'qiA 
the continent, a mightier armament than had ever 
been collected in Europe. At home, the decline of trade 
produced severe distress among the people ; and a spirit 
of discontent and insubordination manifested itself in se- 
veral of the manufacturing districts. 

The parliament passed two bills, by one of which the 
crime of frame breaking was made a capital offence ; and 
by the other, additional powers were given to magistrates 
for a limited time, for the purpose of preserving the public 
peace in the disturbed counties. 

On the 11th of May,, as Mr. Perceval was entering the 
lobby of the house of commons, he was shot by a 
person of the name of Bellingham, and died almost -i'qiA 
immediately. This man professed to have sus- 
tained injuries from the Russian government, which the 
British ministers being unable to redress, he determined to 
put one of them to death, that his case might be brought 
before a court of justice. The murderer made no attempt 
to palliate his crime, which he expiated with his life. 
Ample provision was made by parliament for the widow 
and children of Mr. Perceval ; and men of all parties la- 
mented his untimely fate, and bore testimony to his upright 
and amiable character. 

After much delay, a new administration was formed, in 
which lord Liverpool was appointed first lord of the trea- 
sury, lord Sidmouth (formerly Mr. Addington) secretaiy 
of state for the home department, and Mr. Vansittart chan- 
cellor of the exchequer. 

One of the first acts of the present government was a 
39* 



46*2 HISTORV Of ENGLAND. 

revocation of the orders in council, as far as regarded 
American property; but before intelligence of this repeal 
could be received in America, the United States had decla- 
red war against Great Britain. The republicans commen- 
ced hostilities by an irruption into Upper Canada, but wer^ 
defeated, and obliged to surrender to the British* For 
their disgraces by land, however, the Americans received 
some compensation by their successes at sea. 

In the peninsular war, the French arms were triumphant 
in the east of Spain ; but in the west, they suffered great 
reverses. Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz fell into the hands 
of the allies ; and so important did the capture of the for- 
mer place appear to the Spaniards, that the Cortes confer- 
red on lord Wellington the rank of a grandee, with the 
title of duke of Ciudad Rodrigo. 

Marshal Marmont, who had assumed the command of 
the French army, was completely defeated by lord Wel- 
lington at Salamanca. This was the greatest victory that 
the English general had yet achieved, and sufficiently 
showed that the military talents of his lordship were su- 
perior to those of his adversary, who was one of the most 
distinguished of the French marshals. The eifects 
tftl^ of this victory were felt in different parts of Spain. 
Astorga capitulated, the blockade of Cadiz was 
raised, Bilboa evacuated, and Seville recovered. Lord 
Wellington advanced, and laid siege to Burgos ; but fail- 
ing in his attempt to take it, and the French army, which 
had been reinforced, threatening the allies, his lordship 
retreated, and established his head-quarters at Freynada, 
on the Portuguese frontier. In admiration of his talents 
and achievements, the cortes invested him with the au- 
thority of commander-in-chief of the Spanish armies. 

Napoleon's enterprise against Russia, which, in the 
boldness of its object, as well as the magnificent scale 
on which it was conducted, surpassed every expedition 
undertaken by any European power, threatened the con- 
quest of that mighty empire. The French force employed 
in this undertaking, has been estimated at four 
^qJJj hundred thousand effective men. On the 24th of 
June, Napoleon, with his formidable army, passed 
the Niemen, and entered the Russian territory. The plan 
of his adversaries was, to resist the progress of the in- 
vader without risking a general engagement, to lay waste 



GEORGE lil. 463 

the country through which he should aim to penetrate, 
and to harass him as he advanced, and cut off liis supphes. 
Bonaparte attacked the main Russian army at Smolensko, 
which the Russians despairing of retaining, they retreated ; 
but the invaders, on their entrance, found the city burning 
and in ruins* The conqueror now hastened towards Mos- 
cow, of which, after the sanguinary battle of Borodino, he 
obtained possession. 

On the entrance of the French emperor into that devo- 
ted place, which the invaders had fondly hoped would have 
afforded some repose for their toils, the city was found on 
^re ; and a violent wind arising soon after, the conflagra- 
tion became general, and the whole extent of that ancient 
capital, for many miles, appeared like a sea of flame. Two 
thirds of the city were destroyed. 

Napoleon was now in the greatest difficulty. His stores 
were exhausted, and his supplies intercepted by the Rus- 
sian armies ; and his soldiers, dispirited and discontented, 
were enfeebled by the fatigue and distress to which they 
had been exposed, A retreat was now inevitable. The 
horrors of this retreat, or rather flight, exceed the powers 
of description. The route of the army might be traced, in 
many places, by the dead bodies of those who perished 
from cold, hunger, or fatigue ; and of the numerous hosts 
that composed the invading army, not more than fifty 
thousand men recrossed the Russian boundary. 

The new parliament of Great Britain and Ireland as- 
sembled under happier auspices than the most sanguine 
politician could have ventured to anticipate. The session 
was opened by the prince regent, who expressed his firm 
reliance on the determination of parliament to continue 
€very aid in support of a contest, which had first given to 
the continent of Europe the example of persevering and 
successful resistance to the power of France. A grant of 
one hundred thousand pounds was voted to lord Welling- 
ton, and another of two hundred thousand pounds for the 
relief of the sufferers in Russia, A bill was passed, by 
which the East India Company was to continue in pos- 
session of all its former territories in India, with the later 
acquisitions, continental and insular, to the north of the 
equator, for the further term of twenty years from the 20th 
of April, 1814. The exclusive right of a commercial in- 
tercourse with China, and of the trade in tea, was preserv- 



464 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

ed lo the company ; but his majesty's subjects in genera? 
were permitted to trade to and from all ports within the 
limits of the company's charter, under certain provisions. 

One of the first effects of the late Russian campaign, 

was to rouse the other powers of Europe from their state 

of subiection to the dominion of Prance. Prussia 

AD 

l^io united her arms to those of Russia ; and Austria did 
not long delay to follow the example. Sweden, 
subsidised by Great Britain, joined the allies. The battle 
of Leipsic was completely decisive against the Prench ; 
and the Dutch, availing themselves of this opportunity of 
throwing off the galling yoke of Prance, recalled from his 
long exile the prince of Orange, who entered the Hague 
amidst the acclamations of the people. The influence of 
Bonaparte in Germany was now nearly annihilated ; and 
the complete deliverance of Europe from the yoke of 
Prance seemed no longer doubtful. 

The disasters of their countiymen in Germany para- 
lyzed the efforts of the Prench in Spain. The skill and 
activity of lord Wellington prevented them from securing 
the line of the Douro ; and, at Vittoria, he completely de- 
feated the Prench, commanded by Joseph Bonaparte, un- 
der whom marshal Jourdan acted as major-general. After 
suffering this defeat, the Prench retired by Pampeluna, and 
pursued their retreat over the Pyrennes into Prance. Jo- 
seph Bonaparte fled in confusion, and thus terminated his 
possession of the Spanish monarchy. 

In the east of Spain, the success of the allies was les& 
flattering ; and sir John Murray, who had landed an army 
of fifteen thousand men from Sicily, attempted the siege of 
Tarragona; but, though the town had been partly dismant- 
led, and was feebly gamsoned,the British general, on the 
report of Suchet's approach from Valencia, hastily aban- 
doned the siege, and left his cannon in the batteries. 

Early in Januaiy, the allied armies in Germany passed 
the Rhine, and entered Prance at different points. Por 
some time. Napoleon appeared irresolute ; but when the in- 
vaders had reached Champagne, he became con- 
iftlJ. '^i"^^^ ^^ ^^® necessity of acting with vigour. At 
lol4 ;gj.jg^^jig^ jjg attacked marshal Blucher, whom he 
compelled to retreat ; but at La Rothiere, he was obliged 
to retire in his turn. The allies now advanced to Troyes, 
which was entered by the prince of Wurtemburg ; Chalons 




Napoleon conveyed to St. Helena, 




The three Sovereigns in Hyde Park, 



GEORGE III. 4(/5 

on the Mai ne was evacuated by Macdonald ; and Chalons 
on the Saone was taken by the Austrians. Bonaparte, 
on the verge of ruin, made the most surprising and ener- 
getic efforts for his recovery. Unable to oppose an ade- 
quate resistance to the allied armies in every quarter, he 
determined to concentrate his forces, and by bearing vigo- 
rously on particular points, to aim at destroying their com- 
munication with each other. In pursuance of this plan, 
he attacked the Prussian army under Blucher, and com- 
pelled him to retreat to Chalons on the Marne. He next 
directed his attention to prince Schwartzenberg, who had 
been advanced on Paris, by way of the Seine, and forced 
him to retire. 

During these transactions, negotiations for peace were 
carried on at Chatillon. The British envoys were the 
earl of Aberdeen and lord Cathcart, under the direction 
of lord Castlereagh ; Caulaincourt was the representative 
of Napoleon ; and plenipotentiaries were also appointed 
by the Russian, Austrian, and Prussian courts. The ulti- 
matum of Bonaparte, however, to maintain the integrity 
of the French empire, were deemed inconsistent with the 
balance of power in Europe, and on that account the con- 
ferences terminated. 

In the mean time, the marquis of Wellington, after 
crossing the Bidassoa, gradually proceeded in the south 
of France. His army forced the passage of the Gave de 
Pau at Orthes, and next day crossed the Adour. A divi- 
sion under marshal Beresford entered Bordeaux, which 
declared for the Bourbons, and the chief inhabitants wel- 
comed the British troops as deliverers. Soult was defeated 
by the marquis of Wellington at Tarbes, and afterwards 
at Toulouse. 

The allied armies in the north of France continued to 
advance, and, notwithstanding the extraordinary exertions 
and abilities displayed by Napoleon, they succeeded, by a 
convention entered into with marshal Marmont, in ob- 
taining possession of the city of Paris. A special senate 
appointed a provisional government, which declared, that 
Napoleon Bonaparte had violated the compact which unit- 
ed him to the French people, and had thereby forfeited his 
right to the throne of France. 

Under these circumstances, on the 4th of April a treaty 
was concluded at Fontainbleau, by which Bonaparte, on 



466 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

certain conditions, abdicated, for himself and his heirs, the 

thrones of France and Italy. The isle of Elba was 

iftli ^^ ^® possessed by him in full sovereignty, and an 

annual revenue of two millions of francs, charged 

on the great book of France ; and to his consort, Maria 

Louisa, were assigned the duchies of Parma, Placentia, 

and Guastalla. On the 20th of the same month, Napoleon 

began his journey to the isle of Elba, accompanied by 

four commissioners from the allied powers. 

Louis XVIII. embal'ked at Dover, and was joyfully wel- 
comed at Calais ; but in the capital, the acclamations of 
the loyal people produced no response from the soldiery. 
One of the first acts of Louis was to issue a declaration 
forming the basis of the constitutional charter, by which 
the liberties of the French nation were to be secured. 

Peace was concluded between France and the allied 
powers, Austria, Russia, Great Britain and Prussia. By 
this treaty, the continental dominions of France were, ge- 
nerally speaking, restricted to the limits which bounded 
them on the 1st of January, 1792. Her colonies, with a 
few exceptions, were restored. England retained Malta, 
the Cape of Good Hope, and the small island of Heligo- 
land, besides some islands in the east and West Indies. 

In the beginning of June, the emperor of Russia and the 
king of Prussia visited England, attended by marshal Blu- 
cher, the Hetman PlatofF, and other distinguished officers. 
The visit of these illustrious strangers was celebrated in 
London, and other parts of the kingdom, with extraordi- 
nary rejoicing and festivity. 

The duke of Wellington's return was hailed with no 
less joy than the arrival of the allied sovereigns. On his 
taking his seat for the first time in the house of lords, his 
various patents of honour, as baron, viscount, earl, mar- 
quis, and duke, were successively recited ; and the thanks 
of the house, which had been voted the evening before, 
were addressed to him by the lord chancellor. To sup- 
port these high honours, the sum of three hundred thou- 
sand pounds was voted for the purchase of a palace and 
domain suitable to his dignity. Proportionate honours and 
emoluments were assigned to his gallant companions in 
arms ; and generals Graham, Hill, and Beresford, were 
raised to the peerage. 

While peace was thus happily restored to Europe, fh* 



GEORGE Il£* 467 

war between Great Britain and the United States of Ame- 
rica still raged with much animosity, devastation, and 
bloodshed. At length, however, on the 24th of 
December, a treaty of paciiSication was effected be- ^qi^ 
tween the two countries at Ghent; and for the 
first time, after the period of a quarter of a century, with 
the exception of the feverish truce of Amiens, a general 
peace prevailed in both hemispheres, and for the present 
the temple of Janus was closed. 

The return of Bonaparte from Elba created a strong 
feeling throughout Europe. This extraordinary man land- 
ed in the south of France, with a few followers, on 
the first of March, and was every where received -i'q^p 
with extravagant joy. On the 20th of the same 
month, Louis XVIII. fled from Paris, and on the evening 
of the same day. Napoleon entered that capital, and re- 
sumed the government. 

His first attempt was to conciliate the allies, to whom 
he proposed to maintain the peace which had been con- 
cluded with Louis at Paris ; but the allies rejected the 
proposition, and began immediately to put their armies in 
motion, with the avowed design of once more displacing 
him, and restoring the Bourbons. The English and Prus- 
sians were first assembled in the Netherlands under Wel- 
lington and Blucher , and Napoleon, at the head of 150,000 
men, advanced against them, on the 12th of June. At 
Charleroi, he encountered the Prussians, who, after great 
loss, retreated upon Wavre, where they were followed by 
the French right wing under Grouchy. On the next day, 
the left division of the French army had a severe conflict 
with the English and Dutch at Quatre Bras, after which 
the British division retreated to Waterloo, where, meeting 
with reinforcements, was fought one of the severest 
engagements recorded in history. The French ^^J** 
made the attack about noon, and persevered with 
great fury during the whole day. About four in the after- 
noon, a Prussian army, under Bulow, arrived on the field, 
and assisted in checking the impetuosity of the French ; 
at seven o'clock, the remainder of the Prussians under 
Blucher arrived from Wavre ; and assailing the French on 
their rear to the right, a general confusion in their army 
took place, and at nine o'clock they fled in disorder to- 
wards Charleroi, leaving 30,000 killed and wounded, and 



468 HISTORY OF fiNGLANO* 

all their cannon and materials of war in the hands of the 
^actors. 

The Prussians contniued the pursuit throughout the 
night. On the side of the aUies, the total of killed and 
wounded was not inferior to that of the French, and among 
them were many officers of distinction, who had acquired 
gr^at celebrity during the previous wars. 

The English and Prussian armies now advanced rapidly 
into France, and invested Paris, and in a few days the ' 
French provisional government entered into a convention* . 
Louis XVIII., who in the interim had resided at Ghent, 
at the same time entered his capital ; and though there 
was still a considerable French force in the field and in 
garrisons, it was reduced to submission in a short time by 
the armies of Austria and Russia, which had also pene- 
trated France. 

Meanwhile Bonaparte, who, after abdicating at Paris in 
favour of his son, had proceeded to Rochefort for the pur- 
pose of embarking for America, finding it impracticable 
to elude the vigilance of the British cruisers, went volun- 
tarily on board a British man of war, which immediately 
sailed for Torbay. The decision of the British govern- 
ment, in concert with the allies, was, that he should be 
conveyed to the island of St. Helena, in the southern At- 
lantic, there to reside as a state prisoner, under the in- 
spection of commissioners appointed by each of the con- 
federate powers. 

By the arrangements of the congress, to which lord Cas- 
tlereagh was deputed on the part of the English govern- 
ment, the seven Ionian islands were placed under the pro- 
tection of Great Britain ; to whose sovereign was also con- 
firmed the title of king of Hanover. 

While these important events were passing in Europe, 
the arms of Britain had achieved some valuable conquests 
in Asia. A dispute hud arisen between the East India 
Company and the Nepaulese, concerning their bounda- 
ries; and the Nepaulese, who were a brave and hardy 
race, endeavoured to force their pretensions by the sword ; 
but they were overcome by the British troops, directed by 
the marquis of Hastings, and the whole tract of territory 
in dispute was ce<led to the East India Company. 

An important revolution took place at this time in Cey- 
lon. The king of Candy, who possessed the interior of 



GliORGE III. 469 

the island, having alienated the hearts of his subjects by a 
series of cruelties^ and provoked the iiostihty of his power- 
ful neighbours, was dethroned, and his family excluded 
from the crown. A treaty was signed in a solemn assem- 
bly of adikars and other chiefs of the provinces, by which 
the dominion of the Candian empire was vested in the king 
of Great Britain, with a reservation to those chiefs of their 
rights and immunities. 

An event, which gave universal satisfaction, was the 
marriage of the princess Charlotte of Wales, pre-^ 
«umptive heiress to the British throne, to the prince igig 
Leopold of Saxe Cobourg. A naval expedition was 
this year undertaken against Algiers, which had refused 
to abolish christian slavery. The dey commenced hostili- 
ties by the seizure and imprisonment of the British vice 
consul, and by a most horrible massacre of Christians e 
gaged in the coral fishery at Bona. Lord Exmouth t 
tacked Algiers with a formidable armament ; and the dey» 
after a tremendous conflict, was compelled to accede to 
the terms of the English admiral. 

In England, great distress prevailed, particularly in the 
manufacturing districts, in which the people suffered from 
a depreciation of wages, consequent on an almost total 
stagnation of trade. The public mind was agitated by 
rumours of plots and conspiracies ; and at Derby, a num- 
ber of persons were tried for high treason, and three of 
them being found guilty, underwent the dreadful sentence 
of the law. 

The hopes founded on the happy union of the prince 
regent's only daughter with the prince of Cobourg, were 
fatally blighted on the 6th of November, by the 
death of that amiable princess, at a short period -t'o^j 
after her delivery of a still-born male infant, to the 
unspeakable grief of the royal family, and the general soi*^ 
row of the whole nation. 

After a long and severe illness, queen Charlotte, con- 
sort of George III., died on the 17th of November. In 
consequence of her death, the duke of York was 
appointed guardian of the king's person, with a |Q|o 
salary of ten thousand pounds a year. 

The spirit of discontent, which had already appeared in 
the manufacturing districts, now became alarming. A 
meeting of the people was held at Manchester, on the IClii 
40 



470 HISTORY OF ENGLANC 

of August, for the purpose of petitioning for a reform ill 
parliament, to the number of 60,000, carrying va- 
,^,Q rious banners. Mr. Hunt, the chairman, and some 
others, were arrested on the hustings, and a party 
of yeomanry cavaky beginning to strike down the banners^ 
a scene of dreadful confusion arose ; numbers were tram- 
pled under the feet of men and horses ; many persons, 
even females, were cut down by sabres ; some were killed, 
and between three and four hundred were wounded and 
maimed. The interference of an armed yeomanry for the 
prevention rather than for the suppression of riot, produ- 
ced a strong sensation throughout the country ; and ad- 
dresses on this unfortunate affair were prepared in the 
principal cities and towns in the kingdom. 

At the close of the year, it was announced, that the 
bodily health of the king had partaken of some of the in- 
firmities of age; and on Saturday, the 29th of January, 
at thirty-five minutes past eight in the evening, his 
^'ocyA majesty expired without a struggle, in the eighty- 
second year of his age. Thus terminated, in its 
sixtieth year, the reign of George the Third, a sovereign 
who deserved to be emphatically styled the father of his 
people. Their loyalty and affection were always consi- 
dered by him as the best and most permanent security of 
his throne; and by his own example, he promoted among 
them the practice of those duties which alone could enable 
them to enjoy the blessings of civil and religious liberty 
as guarantied by the constitution. His habitual piety, 
and constant trust in Providence, greatly strengthened the 
natural courage and firmness which he possessed, and for 
which, on occasions of personal danger, he was so emi- 
nently distinguished. If, in matters of state policy, ho 
sometimes evinced a tenaciousness of purpose, whic*^ 
seemed to border on obstinacy, this must be attributed t-o 
his strong sense of the obligatio)i under which he consi 
dered himself bound, in discharge of the important tnisi 
committed to him. He was punctually assiduous in the 
exercise of his royal functions, and exemplary in the fulfil- 
ment of all the social dnties. Temperance and exercise 
secured to him for a long period the enjoyment of unin- 
terrupted health. The English sceptre may have "been 
swayed by sovereij^ns endowed with more splendid quali- 
ties than those of George the Third ; but it niay be greatly 



GEORGE IV. 471 

doubted whether any of his predecessors, since Edward 
the sixth, has borne his faculties so meekly, or been " so 
clear in his great office." 



CHAP. XXIV. 

The reign of George IV, 

On the death of the late king, his eldest son, George 
prince of Wales, who, since the beginning of 1811, had 
acted as regent of the united kingdom, ascended the 
throne ; and, on the 31st of January, George the 
fourth was publicly proclaimed. For nine years 1Q9/C 
he had governed the kingdom; and, during that 
time, the period had been irradiated with military renown 
No sovereign, ancient or modern, can perhaps display, 
within so short a time, such a series of events as occurred 
during the exercise of the royal functions by the prince 
regent. When he took the reins of government, the situa- 
tion of Europe was adverse to the policy of Great Britain, 
and prospects were by no means cheering. The power 
of Napoleon seemed strongly consolidated by the subjuga- 
tion of the continent ; but scarcely was unrestricted au 
thority given to the prince, than Napoleon undertook his 
gigantic and disastrous expedition into Russia, which led 
to corresponding reverses in Spain, and by successive vic- 
tories of the British and Spanish armies. 

About this time several obscure individuals, at the head 
of whom was Arthur Thistlewood, entered into a conspi- 
racy to assassinate the king's ministers, at a cabinet din- 
ner, and for this purpose they met in a stable loft in Cato- 
street ; but the plot having been revealed to tfie privy- 
council by one who had been associated with them for the 
purpose of betraying their designs, they were apprehended, 
and five of them were convicted and executed. 

The unhappy differences that existed betweeia the pre- 
sent sovereign and his royal consort, have been noticed in 
the preceding reign. In 1814, her royal highness embark- 
ed at Worthing, and after paying a visit to her brother at 
the court of Brunswick, she proceeded to Italy, every 
where receiving the honours due to her rank. On the ap- 
proach of winter, she fixed her residence at Naples. She 
afterwards travelled through various parts of the conti- 



472 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

nent, visited Jerusalem and other towns of Palestine, as 
well as different places in the Mediterranean. 

On the accession of the present king, in consequence of 
the manner in which she had conducted herself after leav- 
ing England, her majesty's name was erased out of the 
liturgy ; and she was informed, that if she returned to this 
countiy, judicial proceedings would be instituted against 
her ; but if she would consent to live abroad, the sum of fifty 
thousand pounds a year would be allowed her. No sooner, 
however, was this proposition made to her, than the queen 
immediately proceeded to Calais, accompanied by lady 
Anne Hamilton and Mr. Alderman Wood; and embarking 
on board a packet boat which lay in the harbour, she sail- 
ed for England, and on the 5th of June landed at Dover, 
where she was greeted by acclamations of the populace. 

On the day of her majesty*s arrival in London, the king 
sent a message to parliament, requesting that an inquiry 
into the queen's conduct might be instituted, and that cer- 
tain papers, containing the evidence which had been col- 
lected at Milan, might be examined. On this evidence, it 
was intended to found a bill of pains and penalties against 
the queen. After much discussion, a secret committee of 
the house of lords was appointed to examine the documents ; 
and it was fully determined, that her majesty should be tried 
by the peers of the realm. 

During the queen's trial, which continued for forty-five 
days, the public mind was violently agitated, and 
1R20 ^^® spirit of party extreme. It was urged against 
the queen, that she had raised a favourite Italian 
in her employment from a menial station to one of rank 
and honc^tir ; that she had permitted him to take familiari- 
ties with her; that, having instituted a new order of knight- 
hood, called " the order of St. Caroline," she had deco- 
• rated him with its insignia; and that she had otherwise 
demeaned herself in a manner unbecoming the character 
and conduct of a British princess. A very small majority 
of the lords having declared her guilty, the bill was, on the 
lOth of November, formally withdrawn. 
- This year, revolutions took place both in Spain and Por- 
tugal, with little or no bloodshed ; and the despotic govern- 
ments in the peninsula were changed for others of a more 
popular form. 




69 

ft, 



8 
to 

o 

O 

o 

6 



GEORGE IV. 473 

Napoleon, the ex-emperor of France, died on the 



A. D. 



5th of May, in the island of St. Helena, where he tqot 
had been detained a close state prisoner since his '^ 
surrender in 1815 to the English government. 

On the 19th of July, the ceremony of the coro- 
nation of George the fourth took place in West- -taS^ 
minster Abbey. The greatest preparations had been 
made to celebrate it with becoming splendour; and Lon- 
don never before contained such an assemblage of rank 
and fashion. This national ceremony was conducted with 
a magnificence never equalled on any former occasion, and 
with a aegree of order and decorum highly creditable to 
those by whom the management was superintended. 

The reader has, therefore, been conducted in this volume 
through a period of nearly two thousand years. He 
found these islands inhabited by tribes of naked savages, 
and leaves them in possession of the most civilized peo- 
ple on earth, renowned in arts, arms, commerce, an(t 
agriculture. 

He has seen them a prey to Roman ambition ; while, 
during the last war, Rome itself was captifred and occu- 
pied even by a small division of British troops ! He has 
beheld them without ships to oppose the invasions of the 
Romans, the Saxons, the Danes, and the Normans, and 
he now finds them great on every ocean ; and their com- 
mercial shipping covering all seas under the protection of 
a flag eveiy where respected. 

He found their rude population governed by chiefs of 
small tribes or clans, and has beheld these extended to 
SEVEN kingdoms in England, two in Wales, one in Scot- 
land, and THREE in Ireland ; till, after successive contests 
of power and patriotism, the whole have been united un- 
der ONE Sovereign, whose dominion reaches through nur- 
merous colonies to eveiy clime in the four quarters. ibf the 
world. 

He was first introduced to such people as now inhabit 
THE WOODS of America, in a country equally covered with 
woods, and living in huts and caverns ; but in 1820, he 
finds a country of matchless cultivation, abounding in 
all social improvements, affording examples to other na- 
tions of the ARTS of Life, and filled with splendid cities, 
palaces, and public edifices. He finds pastures in 
place of FORESTS, enclosed corn fields once barren 
40* 



4T4 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

HEATHS, and ROADS and canals uniting that country, as 
one whole, which, in the commencement of this History, 
was in every direction impassable. 

In place, too, of the arbitrary will of the strongest, 
and the law of the most daring, he has traced the gradual 
developement of a system of equal justice, and the heroic 
conquest of mind over brutal strength in the firm establish 
ment of a political constitution, which, when equally 
balanced in its three estates, will merit the admiration of 
the world, and the gratitude of the people who are its for 
tunate subjects. jp 

Above all, he has seen the darkest superstitions of 
savage life yield successively to the lights of Christiani- 
ty — and the abuses of the Romish Church corrected by a 
reformed establishment, which, tolerating every variety 
of opinion, enables all to enjoy perfect freedom of con- 
science, and corresponding modes of worship. 

During this glorious career of humanity, the destinies of 
the nation have been directed by branches of the same 
FAMILY. From Hengist, who married the daughter of 
Vortigern, we trace this family to Edmond Ironside ; 
and from him, amid various struggles of virtue and vice, 
through the Norman, Plantagenet, Tudor, and Stuart 
families, down to the reigning house of Guelph, in the 
person of George the Fourth. 



the end. 



•^* Five hundred questions have been prepared, to adapt 
this volume to the inteirogative system of instruction. 



APPXSHDXX:. 



I. 

SUCCESSION OF SOVEREIGNS. 



THE SAXON HEPTARCHY. 

The kiijdom of Kent contained only the county of Kent ; its 

kings were, 



1 Hengist, began 

2 Eske . 

3 Octa . . 

4 Ymbrick 

5 Ethelbert 

6 Edbald . 

7 Ercombert 

8 Egbert . 

9 Lothaire 



454 
488 
512 
534 
568 
616 
640 
664 
673 



10 
11 

12 



Edrick 684 

Withdred .... 685 

( Eadbertand ) 

i Edelbert S * 



725 



13 Edelbert alone 



743 



14 Adric 760 

15 Ethelbert Pren . . 794 

16 Cudred 799 

17 Baldred 805 



This kingdom began 454, ended 823. Its first christian king 
was Ethelbert. 



The kingdom of South Saxons contained the counties of Sussex 
and Surrey ; its kings were, 



Ella, began 
Cissa . . 
Chevelin 
Ceolwic 
Ceoluph 



491 
514 
590 
592 
597 



6 



Cinigsil 
Quicelm 

7 Canowalch 

8 Adelwach 



< Cinigsil > 
( Quicelm $ * 



611 

643 

648 



This kingdom began 491, ended 685. 
was Adelwach. 



Its first christian king 



The kingdom of East Saxons contained the counties of Essex 
and Middlesex ; its kings were. 



Erchenwin, began . 527 

Sledda 587 

Sebert . . . . . 598 

( Sexred i 

< Seward > . . . 616 

f Sigebert ) 

Sigebert the Little . 623 

Sigebert the Good . 653 

Swithelme . . . . 655 



10 
11 



14 



8 Sighere and Sebbi . 665 

9 Sebbi 693 

Sigherd and > y^^A 

Seofrid I ' ^94 

Offa 700 

12 Ceolfred .... 709 

13 Suithred .... 746 
Sigered 799 



This kingdom began 527, ended 827. 

was Sebert. 



Its first christian king 



476 



HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 



The kingdom of Northumberland contained the counties ol 
Yorkshire, Durham, Lancashire, Westmoreland, Cumberland, 
and Northumberland ; its kings were. 



1 Ella, or Ida, began . 547 

2 Adda 559 

3 Clappea .... .565 

4 Theodwald ... 572 

5 Fridulph .... 573 

6 Theodorick ... 579 

7 Athelrick .... 586 

8 Athelfrid .... 593 

9 Edwin 617 

10 Osric 633 

11 Oswald 634 

12 Oswy 643 

13 Ethelward .... 653 

14 Egfrid 670 

15 Alkfryd 685 

16 Osred I. .... 705 
This kingdom began 547, ended 827. 

was Edwin. 



17 Cenred 716 

18 Osrick 718 

19 Ceolulphe .... 730 

20 Egbert ..... 737 

21 Oswulph . . . . 758 

22 Edildwald .... 759 

23 Alured . . . . . 765 

24 Atheldred .... 774 

25 Alswald 1 779 

26 Osred II. • • -^ . 789 

27 Atheldred restorecF . 790 

28 Osbald . . . . . 796 

29 Ardulph ... . 797 

30 Alswald 11. ... 807 

31 Andred . . . . . 810 



Its first christian king 



The kingdom of Mercia contained the counties of Huntingdon, 
Rutland, Lincoln, Northampton, Leicester, Derby, Notting- 
ham, Oxford, Chester, Salop, Gloucester, Worcester, Stafford, 



Warwick, Buckingham, Bedford, and Hertford 



Creda, began 
Wibba . 
Cheorlas 
Penda . 
Peada . 

6 Wolf here 

7 Ethelred 

8 Kenred . 

9 Ceolred . 



582 
595 
616 
625 
656 
659 



704 

709 



10 Ethelbald 

11 Offa . . 

12 Egfryd . 

13 Cenolf . 

14 Kenelme 

15 Ceolwolf 



675 16 Burnulf 



17 Ludecan 

18 Wiglafe . 



its kings were, 
716* 
757 
794 
795 
819 
819 
821 
823 
825 



This kingdom began 582, ended 827. 

was Peada. 



Its first christian king 



The kingdom of East 
Norfolk, Cambrid^ 

1 Uffa, began 

2 Titillus . 

3 Redwald 

4 Erpinwald 

5 Sigebert 

6 ^fg^il^ 
^ Annas 

7 Ethelhere 



Angles contained the counties of Suffolk, 
;e, and the isle of Ely ; its kings were, 



575 

578 
599 
624 
636 

644 

654 



9 
10 

11 

12 
13 
14 



Ethwald 

Adwulf . . 

Alswald . . 
< Beorna and 
( Ethelbert 

Beorna alone 

Ethelred . 

Ethelbert . 



659 
664 
r>83 

, 49 

/»8 
?t'\ 

7t''> 



This kingdom began 575, ended 792. 

was Redwald. 



Its first christian kin^ 



APPENDIX. 



47T 



^he kingdom of West Saxons contained tlie counties of Corn- 
wall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wilts, Hants, and Berks ; its 
kings were, 

1 Cherdic, began . . 519 -.rj ( Censua, Escwin, ) r.^^ 

2 Kenrick 534 ^" { and Centwin S 



3 Chevline .... 560 

4 Ceolric 592 

5 Ceoluph .... 598 

( Quinthelin > 

7 Ceonowalch . . . 643 

8 Adelwalch . . . . 648 

9 Sexburga .... 672 



'fe' 



11 Ceadwald .... 686 

12 Ina 688 

13 Adelard 726 

14 Cudred 740 

16 Brithnck .... 784 

17 Egbert 800 

This kingdom began 519, ended 828. Its first christian king 

was Kingills. 

The Saxons, though they were divided into seven kingdoms, 

were, for the most part, subject only to one monarch, who was 

styled king of the English nation ; the most powerful giving the 

law unto the others, arid succeeded as follows : 

HENGIST, first monarch of Britain, landed in the Isle of 
Thanet, 449 ; laid the foundation of the monarchy in 455 ; de- 
feated Vortimer at Crayford, in Jan. 457; massacred 300 Bri- 
tish nobles on Salisbury plain, May 1, 474. He bore in his 
standard the white horse, blazoned in the same manner as now 
borne by the dukes of Brunswick. He was born at Angria, in 
Westphalia, reigned 34 years, died in 484. 

ELLA, second monarch, landed at Shore.ham, ia Sussex, in 
477 ; assumed the title of king of the South Saxons in 491 ; 
died in 499. 

CHERDIC, third monarch, arrived in Britain, and overcame 
Arthur, near Chard, in Somersetshire, 519; began the king- 
dom of the West Saxons the same year ; died in 534. 

KENRICK, second king of the West Saxons, fourth monarch, 
eldest son of Cherdic, succeeded in 534 ; and died in 560. 

CHEVELINE, third king of the West Saxons, and fifth mo- 
narch, succeeded his father, 560; seized on Sussex in 590; 
abdicated in 591 ; and died, in banishment, in 592. 

ETHELBERT I., fifth king of Kent, and sixth monarch, in 
592; St. Augustine first arrived in his dominions, who, with 
his followers, were entertained by the king at Canterbury, 
where they settled ; to whose doctrine Ethelbert became a 
convert. He gave Augustine an idol temple, without the 
walls of the city, as a burial place for him and his successors, 
which was converted into the first monastery. The king was 
the first that caused the laws of the land to be collected and 
translated into Saxon. He died Feb. 24, 617, and was buried 
at Canterbury. 

REDWALD, third king of the East Angles, seventh monarch, 
616 ; he died 624. 

EDWIN the Great, king of Northumberland, succeeded ag 
eighth monarch in 624. He was the first christian, and the 



478 HISTORY OF ENGLAND 

second king of Northumberland. He lost his life in a battle 
at Hatfield, Oct. 3, 6.33. 

OSWALD, third king of Northumberland, and ninth monarch, 
634. He was slain at Maserfield, in Shropshire, Aug. 1, 642. 

OSVVY, fourth king of Northumberland, tenth monarch, on Oct. 
13, 634. He defeated Penda, the Mercian, and Ethelred, 
king of the East Angles, Nov. 6, 655. He died Feb. 15, 670. 

WOLFHERE, sixth king of the Mercians, eleventh monarch, 
in 670 ; died 674, and Avas buried at Petersborough. 

ETHELRED, ses^enth king of Mercia, and twelfth monarch, in 
675. He desolated part of Kent, and, in 677, destroyed Ro- 
chester, and many religious foundations ; to atone for which he 
became a monk, 703, and died abbot of Bradney, in 716. 

CENRED, his nephew, eighth king of Mercia, and thirteenth 
monarch, in 704, reigned four years, and following his uncle's 
example, became a monk. 

CEOLRED, son to Ethelred, ninth king of the Mercians, and 
fourteenth monarch, in 709, was killed in battle with the West 
Saxons, in 716 ; and was buried at Litchfield. 

ETHELBALD 1., tenth king of the Mercians, fifteenth mo- 
narch, in 716; built Croyland abbey, in Lincolnshire. He was 
slain by his own subjects, when he was leading his troops 
against Cuthred, the West Saxon, at Secondine, three miles 
from Tamworth, in Warwickshire, and was buried at Repton, 
in Derbyshire, in 756. 

OFF A, the eleventh king of the Mercians, and the sixteenth 
monarch, 756. He was hotn lame, deaf, and blind, which con- 
tinued till he arrived at manhood. He took up arms against 
Kent, slew their king at Otteford, and conquered that king- 
dom. He caused a great trench to be dug from Bristol to 
Basingwerk, in Flintshire, as the boundary of the Britons, 
who harboured in Wales, 774. Offa first ordained the sound- 
ing of trumpets before the kings of England, to denote their 
appearance, and require respect. He admitted his son. Eg-- 
fryd, a partner in his sovereignty ; and, out of devotion, paid 
a visit to Rome, where he made his kingdom subject to a tri- 
bute, then called Peter-pence, and procured the canonization 
of St. Alban. At his return he built St. Alban's monastery, 
in Hertfordshire, 793. He died at Offley, June 29, 794, and 
was buried at Bedford, in a chapel since swallowed up by the 
river Ouse. 

EGFRYD, twelfth king of the Mercians, and seventeenth mo- 
narch, July 13, 794; but died Dec. 17 following, and was bu- 
ried at St. Alban's. 

CENOLE, thirteenth king of the Mercians, and eighteenth mo- 
narch, in 795. He conquered Kent, and gave that kingdom 
to Cudred, 798. He built Winchcomb monastery, in Glou- 
cestershire, where he led the captive prince, Pren, to the altar, 
and released him without ransom or entreaty. He died in 819, 
and was bniried at Winchcomb. 

EGBERT, seventeenth king of the West Saxons, and nine- 
teenth, but first sole monarch, of the English. He conquered 



APPENDIX. 479 

Kent, and laid the foundation of the sole monarchy in 823, 
which put an end to the Saxon heptarchy, and was solemnly 
Civjvvned at Winchester; when, by his edict, he ordered all the 
south of the island to be called England, 827. He died Feb. 
4, 837, and was buried at Winchester. 

GTHEL^VOLF, eldest son of Egbert, succeeded his father, 
notwithstanding at the time of Egbert's death he was bishop 
of Winchester. In 846 he ordained tithes to be collected, and 
exempted the clergy from regal tributes. He visited Rome in 
847, confii^ming the grant of Peter-pence, and agreed to pay 
Rome 300 marks per annum. His son Ethelbald obliged him 
to divide the sovereignty with him, 856. He died Jan. 13, 857, 
and was buried at Winchester. 

ETHELBALD U., eldest son of Ethelwolf, succeeded in 857. 
He died Dec. 20, 860, and was buried at Sherborn, but remo- 
ved to Salisbury. 

ETHELBERT IL, second son of Ethelwolf, succeeded in 860, 
and was harassed greatly by the Danes, who were repulsed 
and vanquished. He died in 866, was buried at Sherborn, 
and was succeeded by 

ETHELRED L, third son of Ethelwolf, in 8r6, when the Danes 
again harassed his kingdom. In 889, they destroyed the mo- 
nasteries of Bradney, Crowland, Petersborough, Ely, and 
Huntingdon, when the nuns of Coldingham defaced them- 
selves to avoid their pollution; and, in East Anglia, they mur- 
dered Edmund, at Edmundsbury, in Suffolk. Ethelred over- 
threw the Danes, 871, at Assendon. He had nine set battles 
with the Danes in one year, and was wounded at Wittingham, 
which occasioned his death, April 27, 872, and was buried at 
Winborne, in Dorsetshire. 

ALFRED, the fourth son of Ethelwolf, succeeded in 872, in the 
22d year of his age ; was crowned at Winchester, and is dis- 
tinguished by tlie title of Alfred the Great. He was born at 
Wantage, in Berkshire, 849, and obliged to take the field 
a^^ainst the Danes within one month after his coronation, at 
Wilton, in Oxfordshire. He fought seven battles with them 
in 876. In 877 another succour of Danes arrived, and Alfred 
was obliged to disguise himself in the habit of a shepherd, in 
the isle of Alderney, in the county of Somerset, till, in 878, 
collecting his scattered friends, he attacked and defeated them 
in 879, when he obliged the greatest part of their army to quit 
the land ; in 897 they went up the river Lea, and built a for- 
tress at W^are, where king Alfred turned off the course oif the 
river, and left their ships dry, which obliged the Danes to re- 
move. He died Oct. 28, 901. 

EDWARD the Elder, his son, succeeded him, and was crown- 
ed at Kingston-upon-Thames, in 901. In 911, Leolin, prince 
of Wales, did homage to Edward for his principality. He 
died at Farringdon, in Berkshire, in 924, and was buried at 
Winchester. 

ATHELSTAN, his eldest son, succeeded him, and was croAvn- 
ed with far greater magnificence than usual, at Kingston-upon- 



480 HlSTOilY OP ENGLAND. 

Thames, in 929. In 938 he defeated two Welsh pdnces, but 
soon after, on their making submission, he restored them their 
estates. He escaped being assassinated in his tent, 933, which 
he revenged by attacking the enemy, when five petty sove- 
reigns, twelve dukes, and an army who came to the assistance 
of Analf, king of Ireland, were slain; which battle was fought 
near Dunbar, in Scotland. He made the princes of Wales tri- 
butary, 939; and died Oct. 17, 940, at Gloucester. 

EDi\iUND I., the fifth son of Edward the elder, succeeded at 
the age of 18, and was crowned king at Kingston-upon- 
Thames, 940. On May 26, 947, in endeavouring to part two 
who were quarrelling, he received a wound, of which he bled 
to death, and was buried at Glastonbury. 

EDRED, his brother, aged 28, succeeded in 947, and was crown- 
ed at Kingston-upon-Thames, the 17th of August. He died 
in 955, and was buried at Winchester. 

EDWy, the eldest son of Edmund, succeeded, and was crowned 
at Kingston-upon-Thames, in 955. He had great dissensions 
with the clergy, and banished Dunstan, their ringleader, which 
occasions little credit to be given to the character the priests 
give him. He died of grief in 959, after a turbulent reign ol 
four years, and was buried at Winchester. 

EDGAR, at the age of 16, succeeded his brother, and was crown- 
ed at Kingston-upon-Thames, in 959, and again at Bath, 972. 
He imposed upon the princes of Wqles a tribute of wolves' 
heads, that for three years amounted to 300 each year. He 
obliged eight tributary princes to row him in a barge on the 
river Dee, in 974. lie died July 1, 975, and was buried at 
Glastonbury. 

EDWARD the Martyr, his eldest son, succeeded him, being but 
16 years of age ; was crowned by Dunstan, at Kingston-upon- 
Thames, in 975. He was stabbed by the instructions of his 
mother-in-law, as he was drinking at Corfe-castle, in the isle 
of Purbeck, in Dorsetshire, on March 18, 979. He was first 
buried at Wareham, without any ceremony, but removed three 
years after, in great pomp, to Shaftsbury. 

ETHELRED H. succeeded his half-brother, and was crowned 
at Kingston-upon-Thames, on April 14, 979. In 982, his 
palace, with great part of London, was destroyed by a great 
fire. England was ravaged by the Danes, avIi©, in 999, re- 
ceived at one payment about £16,000, raised by a land-tax call- 
ed Danegelt. A general massacre of the Danes, on Nov. 13, 
1002. Sweyn revenged his countrymen's deaths, 1003, and did 
not quit the kingdom till Ethelred had paid him £36,000, which 
he the year following demanded as an annual tribute. In the 
spring of 1008 they subdued great part of the kingdom. To 
stop their progress, it was agreed to pay the Danes £48,000, to 
quit the kingdom, 1012. In the space of twenty years they 
had £469,687 sterling. Soon after Sweyn entered the Hum- 
ber again, wken Ethelred retired to the Isle of Wight, and 
sent his sons, with their mother Emma, into Normandy, to her 
brother, and Sweyn took possession of the whole kingdom, 1013. 



APPENDIX. 481 

SWEYN was proclaimed king of England in 1013, and no per- 
son disputed his title. His first act of sovereignty was an insup- 
portable tax, which he did not live to see collected. He died 
Feb. 3, 1014, at Thetford, in Norfolk. 

CANUTE, his son, was proclaimed March, 1014, and endea- 
voured to gain the affections of his English subjects, but without 
success, retired to Denmark, and 

ETHELRED returned, at the invitation of his subjects. Canute 
returned, 1015, soon after he had left England, and landed at 
Sandwich. Ethelred retired to tlie north, but by evading a 
battle with the Danes, he lost the affections of his subjects, and 
retiring to London, he expired April 24, 1016. 

(SDMUND IRONSIDE, his son, was crowned at Kingston- 
upon-Thames, April, 1016 ; but by a disagreement among the 
nobility, Canute was also crowned at Southampton. In June 
following, Canute totally routed Edmund, at Assendon, in Es- 
sex, who soon after met Canute in the Isle of Alderney, in the 
Severn, where a peace was concluded, and the kingdom divided 
between them. Edmund did not survive above a month after, 
being murdered at Oxford, Nov. 30, 1016, before he had reign- 
ed a year. He left two sons and two daughters ; from one ol 
which daughters James I. of England descended, and from him 
George IV. 

CANUTE was established 1017; made an alliance with Nor- 
mandy, and married Emma, Ethelred's widow, 1018; made a 
voyage to Denmark, attacked Norway, and took possession of 
the crown, 1028; died at Shaftsbury, 1036; and was buried 
at Winchester. 

HAROLD I. his son, began his reign, 1036; died April 14, 1039, 
and was succeeded by his younger brother, 

HARDICANUTE, king of Denmark, who died at Lambeth, 
1041 ; was buried at New-Winchester, and succeeded by a son 
of Queen Emma, by her first husband, Ethelred II. 

EDWARD the Confessor was born at Islip, in Oxfordshire, be- 

fan his reign in the 40th year of his age. He was crowned at 
V^inchester, 1042; married Editha, daughter of Godwin, earl 
of Kent, 1043: remitted the tax of Danegelt, and was the first 
king of England that touched for the king's evil, 1058 ; die^ 
Jan. 5, 1066, aged 65 ; was buried in Westminster-abbey, which 
he rebuilt, where his bones were enshrined in gold, set with 
jewels 1206. Emma, his mother, died 1052. He was suc- 
ceeded by 
HAROLD II. son of the earl of Kent, who began in 1066; de- 
feated by his brother Tosti and the king of Norway, who had 
invaded his dominions, at Stamford, Sept. 25, 1066; but was 
killed by the Normans at Hastings, Oct. 14 following. 
41 



SOVEREIGNS FROM THE CONQUEST. 



Norman Family. 



Kin^* Names. 


Began their 
Reig'n. 


Reigned 

y. M. D. 


Age. 


Deaths. 


Where buried. 


W. Conq. 
W. RufuB 
Henry . . 1 
Stephen 


1066 Oct. 14 
1087 Sept. 9 
UOO Aup. 2 
1135 Dec. 1 


20 10 26 
12 10 24 
35 3 29 
18 10 24 


eo 

43 
67 
49 


Burst leap. 

Slain accidentally. 


Caen. 

VVinchester. 

Reading. 

Feversham. 



The Saxon Line restored. 



Henry 


. 2 


1154 Oct. 


25 


34 8 U 


55 




Fontevrault. 


Richard . 


. 1 


1189 July 


6 


9 9 


43 


Slain with an arrow. 


Fontevrault. 


John 




1 199 April 


6 


17 6 13 


50 




Worcester. 


Henry 


. 3 


1215 Oct. 


19 


55 28 


65 




Westminster 


Edward . 


. 1 


1272 Nov. 


16 


34 7 21 


67 




Westminster 


£dward . 


. 2 


1307 July 


" 


19 6 IS 


43 


Deposed and mtir- 


Gloucester. 


Edward . 


. 3 


1327 Jan. 


25 


50 4 27 


65 


dered. 


Weatmiristsr. 


Richard . 


. 2 


1377 June 


21 


22 3 8 


33 


Dep. and mur. 


Westminster. 



Henry 
Henry 
Wenry 



The Family of Lancaster. 



1393 Sept. 23| 

1413 March 20 
1422 Aug. 311 



13 5 20 


40 


9 5 11 


33 


33 6 4 


49 



Dep. and mur. 



Canterbury. 

Westminster. 

Windsor. 



Edward 
Edward 
Richard 



The Family of York. 



I4G1 March 


4 


22 


1 


5 


41 1 


1483 April 


9 





2 


13 


12 1 


1433 June 


22 


2 


2 





42 1 



Smothered, 
jIn battle. 



The Families united. 



House of Stuart. 



House of Guelph. 



George 
George 
George 
George 



Windsor. 

Tower. 

Leicester* 



Henry . . 


7 


1485 Au?. 


22 


23 8 


52 




Westminster- 


Henry . ; 


8 


1509 April 


22 


37 9 6 


55 




Windsor. 


Edward . . 


6 


1547 Jan. 


28 


6 5 8 


15 




Westminster. 


Q. Mary 




*l>53July 


6 


5 4 11 


42 




Westminster. 


Q,. Elizabeth 




1558 Nov. 


17 


44 4 7 


69 1 Westminster. 



James ... I 


1603 March 


24 


22 3 


53 




Westminster. 


Charles . . 1 


1625 March 


27 


23 10 3 


43 


Beheaded. 


Windsor. 


Charles . . 2 


1549 Jan. 


30 


36 7 


54 




Westminster. 


James . . • 2 


1685 Feb. 


6 


4 7 


67 


Abdicated. 


Paris. 


Will, and Mary 


1689 Feb. 


13 


13 23 


32 




Westminster. 


Q. Anne 


1702 March 


8 


12 4 24 


43 




Westminster, 



i 1714 Aug. 


1 


12 10 10 


67 


2 n27 June 


11 


33 4 5 


77 


3 1760 Oct. 


25 


59 3 14 


88 


4 IS20 Jan. 


31 


Crowned July 19, 1S21. - - 1 



HanoTer. 
Westininster. 
Windsor. - 



APPENDIX. 483 



II. 



EMINENT AND REMARKABLE PERSONS WHO 
HAVE FLOURISHED IN BRITAIN. 

Abercrombt, sir Ralph, killed in Egypt, 1801. 

Addison, Joseph, born 1672, died June 17, 1719. 

Akenside, Dr. Mark, bom 1721, died June 23, 1770. 

Alban, St. the first English martyr, died 303. 

Anson, admiral, died 1/62, aged 62. 

Arkwright, sir Richard, inventor of the spinning jennies, died 

August 2, 1792. 
Arne, Michael, the musician, died 1785. 
Bacon, Roger, born 1214, died 1294. 
Francis, lord Verulam, sent to the tower, 1622 ; died, 

April 9, 1626, aged 57. 
Becket, Thomas, Chancellor to Henry II. 1157 ; made archbi- 
shop of Canterbury, 1162; murdered in the cathedral church 

at Canterbury, Dec. 29, 1170. 
Berkely, bishop of Cloyne, died 1753, aged 73. 
Bernard, sir John, died 1764, aged 80. 
Blackstone, Judge, born 1723, died Feb. 14, 1780. 
Blair, Dr. Hugh, died Dec. 27, 1800, aged 83. 
Blake, admiral, born 1589, died 1657. 
Bolingbroke, lord, died 1751, aged 73. 

Boulton, Matthew, the machinist, born 1728, died Sept. 1809. 
Boyle, Robert, the philosopher, died 1691, aged b'5. 
Bruce, Robert, Scottish general and king, died 1329. 
Buckingham, duke of, killed at Portsmouth by Felton, Aug. 23, 

1628, aged 35. 
Bunyan, John, born 1628, died 1688. 
Burke, Edmund, died July 8, 1797, aged.68. 
Burleigh, lord Exeter, 1560, died 1598. 
Burnet, bishop of Sarum, born 1643, died 1715. 
Butler, Samuel, author of Hudibras, born 1612, died 1680. 
Camden, the historian, died Nov. 2, 1623, aged 72. 
Caxton, William, the first printer in England, 1474, died 1491, 

aged 70. 
Chaucer, Geoffry, born 1328, died 1409. 
Chicheley, Henry, archbishop of Canterbury, died 1443. 
Churchill, Rev. Charles, born 1731, died 1764. 
Clarendon, Hyde, earl of, born 1612 ; banished Dec. 12, 1667 ; 

died Dec. 7, 1674. 
Clarke, Rev. Dr. Samuel, born 1675, died May 17, 1729. 
Coke, lord chief justice, born 1549, died 1634. 
Corigreve, William, born 1752, died 1729. 
Cook, captain James, the navigator, bom Oct. 27, 1728 ; killed 

, Feb. 14, 1779. 
Cornwallis, marquis K. G. born 1738, died in India, 1805 
Cowley, Abraham, born 1618, died 1667. 



484 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

Cowper, William, poet, died 1800. 

Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, born 1489, burnt at Oxford, 

March 21, 1556. 
Cromwell, lord, beheaded July 28, 1540. 
Defoe, Daniel, political Avriter, died 1731. 
Drake, sir Francis, born 1545 ; set sail on his voyage round the 

world, 1577 ; died Jan. 28, 1595. 
Dry den, John, born August 9, 1613, died May 1, 1700. 
Evelyn, John, natural philosopher, born 1629, died 1706. 
Fairfax, sir Thomas, born 1644, died 1671. 
Fielding, Henry, English writer, born 1707, died 1754, aged 47. 
Flamstead, John, astronomer, born 1646, died 1719. 
Foote, Samuel, died Oct. 21, 1777, aged 56. 
Fox, George, founder of the Quakers, died 1681. 
Garrick, David, born at Hereford, 1716, died Jan. 20, 1779. 
Gay, John, English poet, died 1732. 
Gibbs, James, architect, died ]754. 
Glover, Richard, English writer, born 1712, died 1785. 
Goldsmith, Oliver, born 1731, died April 4, 1774. 
Gray, Thomas, the poet, born 1716, died July 30, 1771. 
Gresham, sir Thomas, died 1580. 
Hale, sir Matthew, born 1609, died Dec. 25, 1676. 
Hampden, John, born 1594, killed in battle, June 24, 1643. 
Holinshed, the historian, died 1580. 
Home, John, born 1724, died Sept. 4, 1808. 
Hotspur, Henry Percy, killed July 22, 1403. 
Howard, Mr., the philanthropist, born about 1725, died Jan. 20, 

1790. 
Howe, lord viscount, slain in America, July 8, 1758, aged 34. 
Hume, David, philosopher and historian, born 1711, died Aug. 

25, 1776. 
Hogarth, William, died 1765, aged 64. 
Johnson, Dr. Samuel, born Sept. 18, 1709, died Dec. 14, 1784, 

aged 78. 
Jones, Inigo, tne celebrated architect, born 1572, died 1651. 

, sir William, died in Bengal, April 27, 1797, aged 47. 

Knox, J ohn, the reformer, born 1505, died 1 572. 

Latimer, bishop of Worcester, burnt at Oxford, Oct. 1555. 

Leland, John, the antiquarian, died 1552, aged 45. 

Lowth, Dr. Robert, bishop of London, learned writer, died 

1787. 
Lucius, the first christian king of Britain, reigned 11 years, 
founded the first church, in London, at St. Peter's Cornhill, 
179. 
Lydgate, John, the historian, lived in 1440. 
Macklin, Mr. CKarles, the comedian, died July 11, 1797, aged 

97. 
Maitland, William, the historian, died 1757. 
Mallet, David, dramatic author, died 1765. 
Marlborough, John, duke of, died June 16, 1722, aged 72. 
Marvel, Andrew, the patriot, born 1620, died 1678. 
Maskelyne, Neville, English astronomer, died 1772. 



APPENDIX. ^^5 

Maskelyne, Rev. Nevil, astronomer royal, born Oct. 6, 1782, 

died Feb. 9, 1811. 
Monk, general, born 1608, died January 4, 1669-70. 
Monmouth, duke of, beheaded 1685, aged 35. 
Moore, sir John, killed in the battle of Corunna, Jan. 16, 1809. 
More, sir Thomas, born 1480, beheaded July 6, 1535, aged 55. 
Mozart, Wolfang Amadeus, musical composer, born Jan. 27, 

1756, died Dec. 5, 1792. 
Murphy, Arthur, died June 18, 1805, aged 11. 
Nelson, admiral lord viscount, duke of Bronte, killed in battle 

in the glorious victory off Trafalgar, Oct. 21, 1805, buried 

at the public expense, in St. Paul's cathedral, Jan. 10, 

1806. 
Newton, sir Isaac, born Dec. 25, 1642, died March 20, 1726—7. 
Northumberland, Dudley, beheaded for attempting to put lady 

Jane Grey on the English throne, 1553. 
Oldcastle, Sir John, hanged and burnt without Temple-bar, 1418; 

the first protestant martyr. 
Ormond, duke of, impeached June 21, 1715? retired to France 

August following ; died in France, and was buried May 22, 

1749. 
Ossian flourished as a poet in 300. 
Palliser, sir Hugh, died March 19, 1796, aged 75. 
Paris, Matthew, the historian, died 1259. 
Partridge, John, the astrologer, born 1644, died 1715. 
Perceval, Spencer, prime minister of England, assassinated May 

11, 1812. 
Pitt, William, earl of Chatham, died May 11, 1778, aged 70, and 

buried at the public expense in Westminster abbey, June 9, 

following. 
, William, son of the foregoing, and prime minister of Eng- 
land, died January 23, 1806. 
Plot, Dr. Robert, antiquarian and historical writer, bom 1641, 

died 1698. 
Pomfret, Rev. Mr. the poet, died young, 1709. 
Pope, Alexander, the poet, died 1744, aged 55. 
Pretender, the old, born June 10, 1688, died 1766. 

, the young, his son, born Nov. 31, 1720, died January 

31, 1788, without male issue. 
Prior, Matthew, died Sept. 18, 1721, aged 56. 
Raleigh, sir Waltar, beheaded October 29, 1618, aged 65. 
Randolph, Thomas, English historian, born 1605, died 1634. 
Rapin, de Thoyras, English historian, died May 16, 1725, aged 

64. 
Richardson, Samuel, moral writer, died 1761, aged 72. 
Russel, lord William, beheaded July 21, 1683. 
Reynolds, sir Joshua, died Feb. 24, 1792, aged 69. 
Sacheverel, Rev. Dr. silenced, March 23, 1710, died 1723. 
Sancroft, archbishop of Canterbury, born 1616; committed to the 

tower, tried and acquitted, 1688 ; deprived, 1689 ; died Nov 

26, 1693, aged 11. 
Selden, John, born 1584, died Oct. 30, 1654. 
41* 



486 HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 

Shakspeare, born 1564, die-d April 3, 1616. 

Sharp, Granville, one of the first who set on foot the inquiry into 
the African slave trade, died April 3, 1616. 

Shenstone, William, English poet and miscellaneous writer, died 
1763. 

Sheridan, Richard Brinsley, born Oct. 1751, died July 7, 1816. 

Shovel, sir Cloudesly, lost on the rocks of Scilly, Oct. 22, 17<y7. 
aged 56. 

Sidney, sir Philip, born 1554, killed in battle Sept. 22, 1586. 

, Algernon, beheaded Dec. 7, 1683. 

Smollet, Dr. Tobias, the historian, died Sept. 17, 1771. 

Spelman, sir Henry, the antiquarian, died 1641, aged 80. 

Spence, Thomas, political economist, died Oct. 1814. 

Spencer, the poet, born 1510, died 1598. 

Steele, sir Richard, died Sept. 1, 1729, aged 53. 

Stillingfleet, bishop of Worcester, died 1699. 

Temple, sir William, died January, 1699, aged 69. 

Thomson, James, died Aug. 27, 1748, aged 71, 

Thurlow, lord, died Sept. 12, 1806, aged 71. 

Tillotson, archbishop of Canterbury, died 1694, aged 63 

Tooke, John Home, born 1736, died March 18, 1812. 

Trenchard, John, born 1662, died 1723. 

Tyler, Wat, the rebel, killed 1381. 

Vernon, admiral, died 1757, aged 73. 

Walker, the Rev. Mr., defended Londonderry, 1689; slain at the 
battle of the Boyne, 1690. 

Wallace, sir William, eminent Scotch general, killed 1304 

Waller, Edmund, English poet, died 1687, aged 81. 

Walpole, sir Robert, earl of Oxford, born 1674, died 1745. 

Warwick, earl of, the king-maker, defeated and slain at the battle 
of Barnet, April 14, 1461. 

Watts, Dr. Isaac, born 1673, died 1748. 

West, James, the antiquarian, died July 2, 1772. 

Whitbread, Samuel, died by his own hand, July 6, 1815. 

Wickliffe, opposed the pope's supremacy, 1377'^: died 1384 ; and 
40 years after burnt for being a heretic. 

Wilkes, John, the patriot, died Dec. 26, 1797, aged 70. 

William, prince, son of Henry I. lost in his passage from Nor- 
mandy, 1120. 

Williams, sir Charles Hanbury, English historian and poet, died 
1759. 

Wilson, Arthur, the historian, born 1596, died 1652. 

Wolfe, general, killed before Quebec, Sept. 13, 1769, aged 33. 

Wolsey, minister to Henry VIII. 1513, died November 18, 1530, 

aged 59. 
Woollet, William, the engraver, died May 23, 1785, aged 50. 

Wycherly, William, born 1640, died January 1, 1715 — 16. 
Wvkeham, William of, eminent English prelate, bishop of Win- 
chester, died 1404. 
IToung, Dr. Edward, died 1765, aged 81. 



APPENDIX. 



487 



III. 



BATTLES IN ENGLISH HISTORY, 



Shropshire, when Caractacus 

was taken prisoner, 54 after 

Christ. 
Stamford, in Lincolnshire, the 

first between the Britons and 

Saxons, in 449. 
Hellston, in Cornwall, and in 

the Isle of Shepey, between 

Egbert and the Danes, 834. 
The Isle of Thanet, where the 

English were defeated, and 

the Danes settled, 854. 
Assenden, where the Danes 

were defeated by Alfred and 

Etheh-ed, 871. 
Wilton, where the English were 

defeated by the Danes, 872. 
Bury, between Edward the El- 
der, and his cousin Ethelwald, 

905. 
Maiden, between Edward and 

the Danes, 918. 
Stamford, between Edward, the 

Danes, and Scots, 923. 
Widendane, between Athelstan 

the Irish, and Scots, 938. 
Ashden, between Canute and 

Edmund, 1016. 
Battle-bridge, between Harold 

II. and Harfinger, Sept. 25, 

1066. . 

Hastings, where king Harold 

was slain, Oct. 14, 1066. 
Alnwick, 1092. 
Northallerton, Aug. 22, 1138. 
Alnwick, 1174. 
Ascalon, Sept. 16, 1191. 
Lincoln, May 19, 1217. 
Lewes, May 14, 1264. 
Evesham, Aug. 5, 1265. 
Dunbar, April 27, 1296. 
Falkirk, July 22, 1298. 
Bannockburn, June 25, 1314; 

when the English were defeat- 
ed. 



Halidon-hill, near Berwick, 
when 20,200 of the Scots were 
slain, July 29, 1333. 

Cressy, Aug. 26, 1346. ^' 

Durham, when David king of 
Scotland was taken prisoner, 
Oct. 17, 1346. 

Nevil's Cross, in Durham, 1347. 

Poictiers, when the king of 
France and his son were ta- 
ken prisoners, Sept. 19, 1356. 

Otterborn, between Hotspur and 
earl Douglas, July 31, 1388. 

Shrewsbury, July 22, 1403. 

Monmouth, March 11, and Ma\ 
11, 1405. 

Agincourt, Oct. 25, 1415. 

Beauge, where the duke of Cla- 
rence and 1500 English were 
killed, April 3, 1421. 

Patay, under Joan of Arc, Jane 
10, 1429. 

St. Alban's, Mfey 22, 1455. 

Bloreheath, Sept. 22, 1459. 

Northampton, July 19, 1460. 

Wakefield, Dec. 31, 1460. 

Towton, March 29, 1461. 

St. Alban's, 1461. 

Mortimer's Cross, 1461. 

Hexham, May 1.5, 1463. 

Banbury, July 26, 1469. 

Stamford, March 13, 1470. 

Barnet, April 14, 1471. 

Tewkesbury, May 4, 1471. 

Bosworth, Aug. 22, 1485. 

Stoke, June 6\ 1487. 

Blackheath, June 22, 1497. 

Flodden, Sept. 9, 1513, when 
James IV. was killed. 

Sol way, Nov. 24, 1542. 

Hopton-heath, March 19, 1642. 

Worcester, Sept. 23, 1642. 

Edgehill, Oct. 23, 1642. 

Brentford, in 1642. 

Barham-moor, March 29, 1643. 



488 



HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 



Lansdown, July 5, 1643. 
Round -away-down, July 13, 

1643. 
Newbury, Sept. 20, 1643. 
Alresford, March 29, 1644. 
Cropedy-bridge, June 6, 1644. 
Marston-moor, July 2, 1644. 
Newark, in 1644. 
Newbury, Oct. 27, 1644. 
Naseby, June, 1645. 
Alford, July 2, 1645. 
Kingston, in Surrey, 1647. 
Worcester, Sept. 3, 1651. 
Bothwell-bridge, June 22, 1651. 
Sedgemoor, Aug. 6, 1685. 
Boyne, in Ireland, July 1, 1690. 
Fleurus, July 12, 1690. 
Blenheim, Aug. 2, 1704. 
Tirlemont, 1705. 
Ramilies, Whitsunday, 1706. 
Almanza, in Spain, 1707. 
Oudendard, June 30, 1708. 
Malplaquet, Sept. 11, 1709. 
Almanza, July 16, 1710. 
Denain, in 1712. 
Preston, Nov. 12, 1715. 
Dumblain, Nov. 13, 1715. 
Dettingen, June 15, 1743. 
Fontenoy, April 30, 1745. 
Preston-Pans, Stpt. 21, 1745. 
Falkirk, Jan. 17, 1746. ^ 
Roucoux, April 12, 1746. 
Culloden, April 17, 1746. 
Fort du Quesne, July 9, 1755. 
Lake St. George, Sept. 8, 1755. 
Calcutta, June, 1756, and in 

1759. 
Plassey, Feb. 5, 1757. 
Minden, Aug. 1759. 
Niagara, July 24, 1759. 
Quebec, Sept. 15, 1759. 
Lexington, near Boston, April 

19 1775. 
Bunker's-hill, June 27, 1775. 
Long-Island, Aug. 27, 1776. 
White Plains, Nov. 30, 1776. 
Brandy wine creek, Sept. 13, 

1777. 
Saratoga, Oct. 7, 1777. 
Germantown, Oct. 14, 1777. 
Rhode-Island, Oct. 14, 1778. 
Camden, Aug. 16, 1780. 



Guildford, March 16', 1781. 

York-Town, Oct. 29, 1781. 

Seringapatam, 1791. 

Tournay, May 8, 1793. 

Valenciennes, May 23, 1793. 

Cambray, Aug. 9, 1793. 

Lincelles, Aug. 18, 1793. 

Dunkirk, Sept. 7, 1793. 

Quesfioy, Sept. 7, J 793. 

Toulon, Oct. 1, 1793. 

Cateau, March 28, 1794. 

Landrecy, April 24, 1794. 

Cateau, April 26, 1794. 

Ostend, May 5, 1794. 

Tournay, May 18, 1794. 

Maestricht, Sept. 18, 1794. 

Nimeguen, Nov. 4, 1794. 

Quiberon, July 21, 1795. 

Kilkullen. Ireland, May 22, 
1798. 

Naas, May 23, 1798, at Stratford- 
HDon-Slaney; at Backestown, 
May 25; at Dunleven, May 
25; at Taragh, May 26; at 
Carlo'w, May 27; at Monas- 
terevan, the same day ; at Kil- 
dare. May 28; at Ballacanoe 
and at Newtonbury, June 1 ; 
at New-Ross, June 5 ; at An- 
trim the same day; at Ack- 
low, June 9; at Ballynahinch, 
June 13 ; at Ovidstown, June 
19; at Ballynarush, June 20. 

Seringapatam, May 4, 1792. 

Maida, July 6, 1806. 

Vimiera, Aug. 21, 1808. 

Corunna, Jan. 16, 1809. 

Oporto, May 11, 1809. 

Talavera de la Reyna, July 27, 
1809. 

Buzaco, Sept. 27, 1810. 

Barossa, March 5, 1811. 

Albuera, May 16, 1811. 

Buenos Ayres and Monte Video, 
May 18, 1811. 

Ciudad Rodrigo, Sept. 25, 1811, 

Salamanca, July 22, 1812. 

Fort George, on the Niagara. 
May 27, 1813. ' 

Burlington Heights, June 6. 
1813. 

IVittoria, June 21, 1813. 



APPENDIX 



489 



Pymnees, July 28, 1813. 
St. Jean de Luz, Nov. 10, 1813. 
Black-rock, Dec. 30, 1813. 
Toulouse, April 10, 1814. 



Chippeway, July 5, 1814. 
Baltimore, Sept. 12, 1814. 
Ligny, June 16, 1815. 
Waterloo, June 18, 1815. 



IV. 



SEA-FIGHTS, since the Spanish Armada. 



Between the English fleet and 
the Spanish armada, 1588. 

In the Downs, with the Dutch, 
June 16, 1652. 

Again, bept. 28, Oct. 28, Nov. 
29, 1652. 

Off Portsmouth, when admiral 
Blake took 11 Dutch men of 
war, and 30 merchant ships, 
Feb. 10, 1653. 

Off the North Foreland, when 
the Dutch lost 20 men of war, 
June, 2, 1653. 

On the coast of Holland, when 
they lost 30 men of war, and 
admiral Tromp was killed, Ju- 
ly 29, 1653. 

At the Canaries, when Blake 
destroyed the galleons, April, 
1657. 

Off Harwich, when 18 capital 
Dutch ships were taken, and 
14 destroyed, June 3, 1665. 

The earl of Sandwich took 12 
men of war and 2 East-India 
ships, Sept. 4, 1665. 

Again, when the English lost 
nine and the Dutch 15 ships, 
June 4, 1666. 

At Southwold-bay, when the 
earl of Sandwich was blown 
up, and the Dutch defeated by 
the Duke of York, May 28, 
1672. 

Off Beachy-head, when the En- 
glish and Dutch were defeated 
by the French, June 30, 1690. 

Off La Hogue, when the French 
fleet was entirely defeated, and 



21 large men of war destroyed, 
May 19, 1692. 

The Vigo fleet taken by the 
English and Dutch, Oct. 12, 
1702. 

Between the French and Eng- 
lish, Aug. 24, 1704. 

At Gibraltar, when the French 
lost 5 men of war, Nov. 5, 
1704. 

French fleet destroyed by sir 
George Byng, July 31, 1718. 

Off Toulon, Feb. 9, 1744. 

Off Cape Finisterre, when the 
French fleet was taken by ad- 
miral Anson, May 3, 1747. 

Off Ushant, wh^tn admiral Hawke 
took seven men of war of the 
French, Oct, 14, 1747. 

Off Belleisle, when he took 14 
sail of victuallers, July 14, 
1756. ^ 

French beaten off Cape Lagos, 
by admiral Boscawen, Aug. 
18, 1759. 

Off Quiberon Bay, when Hawke 
defeated the French, Nov. 20, 
1752. 

Off Ushant, a drawn battle, be- 
tween Keppel and Dorvilliers, 
July 17, 1778. 

Near Cape St. Vincent, be 
tween admiral Rodney and ad- 
miral don Lagara, when the 
latter was defeated and taken 
prisoner, Jan. 8, 1780. 

Near Cadiz, when admiral Rod- 
ney defeated the Spaniards, 
Jan. 16, 1780. 



490 



HISTORY OP ENGLAND. 



Dogger Bank, between admiral 
Parker and the Dutch, Au- 
gust 5, 1781. 

When admiral Rodney defeated 
the French going to attack 
Jamaica, and took five ships 
of the line, and admiral count 
de Grasse, April 12, 1782. 

The same day admiral Hughes 
destroyed the fleet of France, 
under admiral Suffrein, in the 
East Indies. 

Lord Howe totally defeated the 
French fleet, took six ships of 
war, and sunk several, June 1, 
1794. 

The French fleet defeated, and 
two ships of war taken, by 
admiral Hotham, March 14, 
1795. 

The French fleet defeated by 
lord Bridport, J une 25, 1795, 
and three ships of war taken, 
near L' Orient. 

The Dutch fleet under admiral 
Lucas, in Saldanna Bay, Af- 
rica, consisting of five men of 
war and several frigates, sur- 
rendered Aug. 19, 1796. 

The Spanish fleet defeated by 
sir J. Jarvis, and four line of 
battle ships taken, Feb. 14, 
1797. 



were taken or oestioyed, Oct 
11, 1797. 

The French fleciof 17 ships ol 
war, totally defeated, and 9 of 
them taken, by sir Horatio 
Nelson, Aug. 1, 1798, near 
the Nile, in Egypt. 

The French, off" the coast of Ire- 
land, consisting of 9 ships, by 
sir J. B. Warren, Oct. 12, 
1783, when he took five. 

The Dutch fleet in the Texel 
surrendered to admiral Mit- 
chell, on his taking the Held- 
er, Aug. 29, 1799. 

The Danish fleet, of 28 sail, ta- 
ken or destroyed by lord Nel- 
son off Copenhagen, April 2, 
1801. 

Between the French and Eng- 
lish, in the Bay of Gibraltar : 
Hannibal, of 74 guns, lost, 
July 5, 1801. 

Sound, between Denmark and 
Sweden, passed by the Eng- 
lish fleet, when Copenhagen 
was bombarded , April 2, 1801. 

French and Spanish fleets total- 
ly defeated off Cape Trafal- 
gar, lord Nelson killed in the 
action, Oct. 21, 1805. 

French fleet taken by sir R. 
Strachan, Nov. 4, 1805. 



The Dutch fleet was defeated byi French fleet defeated in the 



admiral Duncan, on the coast 
of Holland, where their two 
admirals and 15 ships of war 



West Indies, by sir T. Duck- 
worth, Feb. 6, 1806. 



DATES OF IMPROVEMENTS AND INVENTIONS 

AiR-BALiiOONS introduced into England, and Mr. Lunardi as 
cended from Moorfields, Sept. 15, 1784; Blanchard and Dr 
Jefferies went from Dover to Calais, Jan. 7, 1785. 

Apricots first planted in England, 1540. 

Archery introduced into England, before 440. 

Artichokes first planted in England, 1487. 

Asparagus first produced in England, 1608. 

Baize manufacture first introduced into England at Colchestei 
?Wfl8. 



APPENDIX. 491 

Beer. — ^Ale invented, 1404, B. C. ; ale-booths setup in England, 
728, and laws passed for their regulation. — Beer first introduced 
into England, 1492; in Scotland, as early as 1482. By the 
statute of James I. one full quart of the best beer or ale was to 
be sold for one penny, and two quarts of small beer for one 
penny. In 1822 the duties on beer were £2,786,319, and on 
malt, £5,013,697. 

Bells invented by Paulinus, bishop of Nola, in Campagnia, about 
400. The first tuneable set in England were hung up in 
Croyland abbey, in Lincolnshire, 960 ; baptised in churches, 
1030. 

Bible first translated into the Saxon language, 939; into the 
English language, by Tindal and Coverdale, 1534 ; first trans- 
lation by the king's authority, 1536. 

Blankets first made in England, 1340. 

Books ; a very large estate given for one on cosmography, by 
kmg Alfred ; were sold from £10 to £30 a piece, sdbout 1400. 

Bows and arrows introduced, 1066. 

Biead first made with yeast about 1650. In the year 1754 the 
quartern loaf was sold for 4rf. ; three years afterwards in the 
year 1757, it rose to lOd. and in March, 1800, to Is. 5d., when 
new bread was forbidden, under the penalty of 5s. per loaf, if 
the baker sold it until 24 hours old. 

jBridge, the first stone one, in England, at Bow, near Stratford, 
1087. 

Buckles invented about 1680. 

Calicos first made in Lancashire, in 1772. 

Candles, tallow, so great a luxury, that splinters of wood were 
used for lights ; first began to be used, 1290. No idea of wax 
candles, 1300. 

Cannon invented, 1330; first used by the English, 1346; first used 
in England, 1445 ; first made of irbn in England, 1547 ; of 
brass, 1635. .-' 

Cauliflowers planted in England, 1703. 

Celery first introduced in 1704. 

Chairs, sedan, first used in London, 1634. 

Cherry-trees first planted in Britain, 100 before Christ; brought 
from Flanders and planted in Kent, 1540. 

Chimneys first introduced into buildings in England, 1200, only 
in the kitchen, or large hall; smoky, where the family sat 
round a large stove, the funnel of which passed through the 
ceiling, 1300. 

China made in England, at Chelsea, in 1752; at Bow, in 1758; 
and in several parts of England in 1760 ; by Mr. Wedgwood, 

Chocolate introduced into Europe, from Mexico, in 1520. 
Cloth, coarse woolen, introduced into England, 1191 ; first made 

at Kendal, 1390 ; medleys first made, 1614. 
Coaches first usejl in England, 1580; an act passed to prevent 

men riding in coaches, as effeminate, in loOl ; began to be 

common in London, 1605. 
Coals discovered near Newcastle, 1234; first dug at Newcastle 



^9^ HISTORY OF ENGLAN1>. 

by a charter granted the town by Henry HI. ; first used, 1280? 
diers, brewers, &c. in the reign of Edward I. began to use 
sea-coal for fire, in 1350, and he published a proclamation 
against it, 1398, as a public nuisance. Imported from New- 
castle to London in IdSO; in general use in London, 1400. 

Coffee first brought into England, in 1641. 

Coffee-trees were conveyed from Mocha to Holland in 1616 ; 
and carried to the West Indies in the year 1726; first cultiva- 
ted at Surinam by the Dutch, 1718 ; its culture encouraged in 
the plantations, 1732. 

Coin first made round in England, in 1101 ; silver halfpence and 
farthings were coined in the reign of John, and pence the 
largest current coin; gold first coined in England, 1087; 
Copper money used only in Scotland and Ireland, 1399 ; gold 
coined in England, 1345 ; groats anu half-groats the largesl 
silver coin in England, 1531; in 1347, a pound of silver was 
coined into 22 shillings, and in 1352, a pound was coined into 
25 shillings ; in 1414 they were increased to thirty shillings ; 
and in 1500, a pound of silver was coined into 40 shillings. In 
1530 they were extended to 62, whicli is the same now ; the 
money in Scotland, till now the same as in England, begari to 
be debased, 1354; gold first coined in Venice, 1346; shillings 
first coined in England, 1068; crowns and half-crowns first 
coined, 15.51 ; copper money introduced into France by Hep- 
ry HI. 1580 ; the first legal copper coin introduced, which put 
an end to private leaden tokens, universally practised, espe- 
cially in London, 1609; copper money introduced into Eng- 
land by James I. 1620; milling coin introduced, 1662; half- 
pence and farthings first coined by government, Aug. 16, 
1672; guineas were first coined, 1673; silver coinage, 1696; 
broad pieces of gold called in by government, and coined into 
guineas, 1732; five-shillings and three-penny pieces in gold 
were issued in 1716 and 1761. Sovereigns were first coined in 
1820. 

Cow-pox, inoculation by, as a security against small-pox, intro- 
duced by Dr. Jenner, 1800. 

Creed, Lord's prayer, and ten commandments, first translated into 
the Saxon tongue, 746. 

Currants first planted in England, 1533. 

Cider, called wine, made in England 1284. 

Distaff spinning first introduced into England, 1505. 

England, so named by Egbert, 829 ; first divided into counties, 
tithings, and hundreds, 890 ; the first geographical map of it 
1520. 

Fairs and markets first instituted in England by Alfred about 886. 
The first fairs took their rise from wakes ; when the numbei 
of people then assembled brought together a variety of tra- 
ders annually on these days. From these holidays they were 
called Jen<^, or fairs. 

Fans, muffs, masks, and false hair, brought into England from 
France, 1572. 

Figures in arithmetic introduced into England, in 1454. 



APPENDIX. 



403 



Fniitg and flowers, sundry sorts before unknown, brought into 
England in the reigns of Henry VII. and Vlll. from about 
1500 to 1578, as the musk and damask roses, and tuhps; seve- 
ral sorts of plum-trees and currant-plants. 

Gardening introduced into England from the Netherlands, from 
whence vegetables were imported, till 1509; musk melons 
and apricots cultivated in England; the pale gooseberry, with 
salads, garden-roots, cabbages, &c. brought from Flanders, 
and hops from Artois, 1520 ; the damask rose brought here by 
Dr. Linacre, physician to Henry VIlI. ; pippins brought to 
England by Leonard Mascal, of rlumstead, in Sussex, 1525; 
currants, or Corinthian grapes, first planted in England, 1555, 
brought from the Isle of Zant, belonging to Venice ; the musk- 
rose, and several sorts of plums, from Italy, by lord Crom- 
well ; apricots brought here by Henry VlII's gardener ; tu- 
matisk plant from Germany, by archbishop Grindal ; at and 
about Norwich the Flemings first planted flowers unknown in 
England, as gilly flowers, carnations, the Provence rose, &c. 
1.5^7 ; woad, originally from Thoulouse, in France ; tulip roots 
first brought into England, from V^ienna. 1578; also beans, 
peas, and salads, now m common use, 1660. 

Gas, use of, introduced in London, for lighting streets, 1814. 

Glass introduced into England by Benedict, a monk, 674 ; glass- 
windows began to be used in private houses in England, 1180 ; 
glass first made in England into bottles and vessels, 1557 ; the 
first plate glass for looking-glasses and coach windows made 
at Lambeth, 1673 ; in Lancashire, 1773 ; window-glass first 
made in England, 1557. 

Grapes brought to England, and planted first in 1552. 

Gunpowder first made in England, 1418. 

Hats first made in London, 1510. 

Hemp and flax first planted in England, 1533. 

Heraldry had its rise, 1100. 

Hops, first used in malt liquors in England, 1525. 

Horse-shoes introduced into general use in 800; first mado of 
iron, 481. 

inouulation first tried on criminals,' 1721. 

Iron first cast in England, 1544. 

Knives first made in England, 1563. 

Lamp for preventing explosion by fire-damp in coal-mines, in- 
vented in 1815. 

Lanterns invented by king Alfred, 890. 

Leaden pipes for conveying water invented, 1236. 

Life-boats invented, 1802. 

Linen first made in England, 1253. Table linen very scaroc) in 
England, 1386. ^ 

Lithograpnic printing orougnt into England, 1801. 

Magic lantern invented by Roger Bacon, 1252. 

Magnifying glasses invented by Roger Bacon, 1260. 

Mulberry trees first planted in England, 16tf*). 

Muslins first manufactured in England, in 178J. 

Navigable canal, the first in England, 1104. 
42 



494 



IIISTOR\ ur ENGI.AND. 



Navy of England, at the time of the Spanish Armada, was 
only 28 vessels, none larger man frigates. James 1. increased 
10 ships of 1400 tons, of 64 guns, the largest then ever built. 
The list of the royal navy of England was, in the years 1808 
and 1817. 

King's ships in ordinary - 176 370 

in commission ----- 627 124 

building at different places - - 66 36 

Total, 869 530 

Needles first made in England, 1545. 

Newspapers. — First puoiisael i^i England, by order of queen 
Elizabeth, and was entitled the English Mercury, one of which 
is remaining in the l^ritish Museum, dated July 28, 1588. 

A private newspaper, called the Weekly Courant, was printed in 
London, in 1622. 

A newspaper was printed by Robert Barker, at Newcastle, in 
1639. The Gazette was first published at Oxford, Aug. 22, 
1642. 

After the revolution, the first daily paper was called the Orange 
Intelligencer, and from that to 1662, there were 26 newspapers, 

tn 1709, there were 18 weekly and one daily paper, the London 
Courant. 

in 1795, there were 38 published in London, 72 in the country, 
13 in Scotland, and ^5 in Ireland; in all, 158 papers. 

In 1809, there were 63 published in London, 93 in the country, 
24 in Scotland, and 3/ in Ireland; making a total of 217 news- 
papers in the United Kingdom. 

New-style introduced into England, 1752. 

Paper, the manufacture of, introduced into England at Dartford, 
in Kent, 1588 ; scarcely any but brown paper made in England 
till 1690 ; white paper first made in England, 1690. 

Parish registers first introduced by lord Cromwell's order, 1538. 

Park, the first in England, made by Henry I. at Woodstock, 1123. 

Penny-post set up in London and suburbs, by one Murray, an 
upholsterer, 1681. 

Pins were first used in England by Catharine Howard, queen of 
Henry VHI. 

Port-holes in ships of war introduced, 1545. 

Posts, regular, established between London and most towns of 
England, Scotland, Ireland, &c. 1635. 

Post-horses and stages established, 1483. 

Post-offices first established in England, 1581 ; and made general 
in England, 1656; and, m Scotland, 1695. Increased as fol- 
lows : 



1644 it yielded 

l<iG4 

1G97 

1714 

1744 



£5,000 


1764 it yielded 


21,900 


1791 


90,505 


1807 — ■ 


145,227 


1815 


235,495 


1822 



£432,048 
481,880 
1,670,423 
2,349,519 
1,958,806 



'ITie first mail conveyed by stage-coaches began Aug. 2, 1785. 
Potatoes first brought to England from America, by Hawkins, in 
1563; introduced into Ireland by sir Walter Raleigh, in 1586. 



APPENDIX. 495 

Priming brought into England by William Caxton, a m«rcer of 
London, 1471, who had a press in Westminster abbey till 1494. 

Roads in England first repaired by act of Parliament, 1524. 

Sail-cloth first made in England, 1590. 

Saltpetre first made in England, 1625. 

Scenes first introduced into theatres, 1533. 

Shillings first coined in England, 1505. 

Ship. — The first double-decked one built in England, was of 
1000 tons burden, by order of Henry VII. 1509 ; it was call- 
ed the Great Harry, and cost £14,000; before this, 24 gun 
ships were the largest in our navy, and these had no port-holes, 
the guns being on the upper decks only. 

Shoes, of the present fashion, first worn in England, 1633. 

Side-saddles first used in England, 1380. 

Silk manufactured in England, 1604. First worn by the Eng- 
lish clergy, 1534. — Broad-silk manufacture from raw silk in- 
troduced into England, 1620. — Lombe's famous silk-throwing 
machine erected at Derby, 1719. 

Soap first made at London and Bristol, 1524. 

Steam-boat established between Norwich and Yarmouth, Nov. 
1813. — Steam-boat capable of conveying 3000 persons, com- 
menced its passage between Limehouse and Gravesend, Feb. 
1815. 

Stereotype printing invented by William Ged, a goldsmith oi 
Edinburgh, 1735. 

Stirups first used in the sixth century. 

Stone buildings first introduced into England, 674. 

Sunday Schools first established in Yorkshire, 1784 : became 
general in England and Scotland, in 1789. 

Tea, coffee, and chocolate, first mentioned in the statute books. 
1660. 

Thread first made at Paisley, in 1722. 

Tiles first used in England, 1246. 

Tobacco first brought into England, 1583. 

Towers, high, first erected to churches, in 1000. 

Turkeys came into England, 1523. 

Watches first brought to England from Germany, 1577. 

Water first conveyed to London, by leaden pipes, 1237. 

Weavers, two, from Brabant, settled at York, 1331. 

Weavers, dyers, cloth-drapers, linen-makers, silk-throwers, &c. 
Flemish, settled at Canterbury, Norwich, Sandwich, Colches- 
ter, Maidstone, Southampton, &c. on account of the duke oi 
Alva's persecution, 1567. 

Weights and measures fixed to a standard in England in 1257. 

Wine first made in England, 1140. 

Woolen-cloth first made in England in 1.331 ; medley cloths first 
made, 1614 ; first dyed and dresbed in England, in 1611. 

Workers^ cloth, 70 families of, from the Netherlands, settled in 
England, by Edward Ill's invitation, 1330. 



406 



HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 



VI. 



DISCOVERIES AND SETTLING OF BRITISH 
COLONIES. 



America, North, first discover- 
ed by Sebastian Cabot, 1497 ; 
settled, in 1610. 

Anguilla in the Carribees, first 
planted, 1650. 

Antigua settled, 1632. 

Baffin's Bay discovered, 1622. 

Bahama isles taken possession 
of, 1718. 

Barbadoes discovered and plant- 
ed, J 614. 

Barbuda planted, 1628. 

Bengal conquered, 1758. 

Bermuda isles settled, 1612. 

Boston, in New-England, built, 
1630. 

Botany Bay settlement, 1787. 

Caledonia, in America, settled, 
1699. 

Canada taken by England, 1759. 

Cape Breton taken and kept, 
1758. 

Cape of Good Hope taken, 1798. 

Carolina planted, 1629. 

Ceylon taken, ItKM. 



Christophers, St. settled, 1626 

Georgia erected, 1739, 

Heligoland taken, 1808. 

Helena, St. settled, 1651. 

Hudson's Bay discovered, 1607. 

Jamaica conquered, 1656. 

Maryland province planted, 
1633. 

Montserrat planted by E*ngland, 
1632. 

Nev^is planted by England, 1628. 

New-England planted, 1620. 

Newfoundland discovered, 1497, 
settled, ]614. 

New- Jersey, in America, plant- 
ed, 1637. 

New- York settled, 1664. 

Nova Scotia settled, 1622. 

Pennsylvania charta for plant- 
ing, 1680. 

Sierra Leone coast settled, 1790. 

Surinam planted by England, 
1640. 

Tobago conquered, 1781. 

Virginia, settlement of, 1696 



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